Through Danny Phantom
by sapphireswimming
Summary: A community collection of episode-inspired oneshots, open to all! This Week: D-Stabalized. Last chapter: Out Pranked by MsFrizzle. TONIGHT IS THE LAST STREAM.
1. FAQ and TOC

**Through Danny Phantom: Phandom wide re-watch. **

_Because 53 episodes + 1 episode per week = 1 year of Danny Phantom goodness. :3_

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Hello Phandom.

**What we're doing:** Re-watching the series an episode per week. We'll watch **Episode 15: "Fright Night" this Friday (that's September 7)**

**Where to find episodes:** All episodes are out on DVD, available on Netflix, and for purchase on Amazon and iTunes. Select episodes are on Youtube and Nickelodeon's website and websites like goodanime and gogoanime show the series as well. Tanger-catnip will set up a livestream at 7 pm and 12 am Eastern Standard Time (US).

**What to do then:** After we watch it, we can chat about each episode and geek out as a collective unit. X3 We can write thoughts, reviews, theories, favorite bits, and pet peeves, etc. And then we can make gifs or artwork or fanfics or videos –anything!- surrounding that one particular episode per week. Contribute whatever you want. :D We just want to revive this show and phandom.

**What **_**this**_** is:** This collection is to house any fics that you would rather post here than on your own profile as well as links to works on your profile or other sites. Let me know when you have something ready to go and I'll put it up. :D

**Where to find us: **

Livestream: livestream /pieinthesky at 7pm and 12am EST every Friday

Tumblr: phandom-widerewatch . tumblr

DeviantArt: the group #Through-DP.

Fanfiction: here.

Forum: throughdannyphantom . freeforums .o rg

Wordpress: throughdannyphantom . wordpress led by Dash. :3

**Ideas for stuffs: **Stories could be blog or journal posts, reviews, drabbles, oneshots, character development or inner thoughts for a scene, an AU twist to the episode, a different ending (what should have happened), a parody, writing about a minor detail no one notices, writing a different plot for the same title, writing for a prompt based on that episode, etc.

Categories of art could be making videos, gifs, redesigning the title card, redrawing a screencap, illustrating a scene, doing portraits of the characters from that episode, drawing a cartoon or comic, etc.

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**Theme**, by sapphireswimming

_A 100 word drabble. To keep this chapter from breaking FF regulations. XP_

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"I can't believe you did this, Tucker."

"What, you don't like it?"

"Like it? It's a contest to write the best theme song for Danny Phantom!"

"I know, dude. Isn't it awesome?"

"No, Tuck. It's turning... me..." Danny whispered, "into some sort of comic book superhero thing."

"Well, that's already sort of what you are. Might as well give you a decent theme song."

"But that's so weird!"

"Does that mean... you don't want to hear mine?"

Danny sighed. "If you stop with the puppy eyes, I'll listen."

"Alright! Okay, so here goes: Yo, Danny Fenton, he was just fourteen..."

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**Table of Contents:  
**_[chapter number. episode (or TDP for the show in general). author. summary. genre. rating.] _

**1. TDP. Theme. sapphireswimming. **Tucker comes up with a theme song. Humor / Friendship, rated K.

** 2. 1MM. Discovery. sapphireswimming. **Danny and Tucker discuss "telling the parents." Friendship, rated K.

**3. 1MM. The Truth. Oak Leaf Ninja.** What if Jazz hadn't stopped Danny from telling his parents? Family, rated K.

**4. 1MM. The Chase. Fluetraya.** The accident changed Danny forever. Friendship / Tragedy, rated K plus.

**5. 1MM. A Good Day to be a Ghost. Watson Baker.** A collection of three drabbles. Humor, rated K.

**6. 1MM. Busboy. The Cinderninja.** He was Danny Phantom... expert busboy. Humor, rated K.

**7. 1MM. Therapy. MsFrizzle.** Jazz tries to make Spike open up. Drama, rated K.

**8. 1MM. Jack Hates Horse Meat. ~BrightBlue925.** The reason Jack loves food. Humor, rated K.

**9. TDP. Molecules Got All Rearranged. Tay****1019411.** The Danny Phantom theme song. Humor, rated K.

**10. 1MM. Drabbles. SRL541.** Three word-limit drabbles from Mystery Meat. General, rated K.

**11. 1MM. Jack and His War. QueenyLeAcH.** And still he babbled on... Humor, rated K.

**12. 1MM. Serious. sapphireswimming.** There were consequences for the man on the plane. Humor, rated K.

**13. 2PB. Four Drabbles Inspired by Episode 2. QueenyLeAcH.** Four drabbles. Humor, rated K.

**14. 2PB. Shattered. SRL541.** Dragon-Sam lost control... AU / tragedy, rated K plus.

**15. 2PB. Crazy. sapphireswimming.** This was simply ridiculous. Humor, rated K.

**16. 2PB. Belt. Phantom-Lightning.** Danny decided on a new wardrobe accessory... Humor, rated K.

**17. 2PB. Beautiful. Oak Leaf Ninja.** Danny thought she was beautiful. DxS. Romance, rated K.

**18. 1MM. A Flicker of Doubt. Avearia.** Her children? Ghosts? Impossible. Introspective, rated K.

**19. 2PB. Elegance. Avearia.** Sam refused to go to the dance. General, rated K.

**20. 1MM. Beakers. Pterodactyl.** Science was unbearable for the month after the accident. Friendship, rated K.

**21. 3OOAK. Resources. sapphireswimming.** How was Tucker's PDA ghost-compatible? General, rated K.

**22. 3OOAK. Genius. sapphireswimming.** Maddie puts the pieces together, with help from Genius Magazine. Family, rated K.

**23. 4AOTKGS. Oops. theCinderNinja.** Danny forgot one very important thing when he flipped the switch. Humor, rated K.

**24. TDP. Jack Drabbles. Avearia.** Because the big guy needs more love. Humor, rated K.

**25. 4AOTKGS. Bumps and Bruises. Avearia.** Jazz looks out for her little brother. Family, rated K.

**26. 4AOTKGS. Project. sapphireswimming.** Jazz set out to disprove everything. Humor, rated K.

**27. 4AOTKGS. Practice. sapphireswimming.** The glass of water disappeared. *poof* Humor, rated K.

**28. 5SI. Happily Leaping Through Meadows With Ghosts. Phantom-Lightning.** After Poindexter, Danny needed to run some damage control. Humor, rated K.

**29. 5SI. Sorry. sapphireswimming.** Sam had some unfinished business. Humor, rated K.

**30. 7BR. Hospitality. sapphireswimming.** Vlad opens his home. Humor, rated K.

**31. 7BR. Danny Wins. Fluehatraya.** Score one for Danny. Humor, rated K.

**32. 7BR. A Single Voice. NebulousMistress**. Vlad realized he wasn't alone. Drama, rated K plus.

**33. 2PB. Rat Race. MsFrizzle.** After getting dumped, Val goes to her dad's work for the evening. Drama, rated K.

**34. 6WYW. Call Me Crazy, But... Avearia.** Lance Thunder tries to explain that the car was flying. Humor, rated K.

**35. 7BR. Drabbles. MsFrizzle.** Two drabbles. Drama, rated K.

**36. 6WYW. Phenetics. sapphireswimming.** Danny and Tucker discuss originality. Humor, rated K.

**37. 4AOTKGS. Clothes Make the Man. MsFrizzle.** When Dash changed the dress code, it could only mean one thing. Humor, rated K.

**38. 8POL. Allusion. TheDPFangurl.** It was an escape. Poetry, rated K.

**39. 8POL. The Most Thoughtful Gift. NebulousMistress.** Jack knew better than to look a gift horse in the mouth. Humor, rated K.

**40. 8POL. A Personal Nightmare. Avearia.** A divorce couldn't happen. Drama, rated K.

**41. 8POL. Escape Artist. MsFrizzle.** Walker accepted the challenge. Mystery, Humor, rated K.

**42. 5SI. Haunted Locker. MsFrizzle.** Jazz begins a legend. Humor, rated K.

**43. 8POL. Beach Comber. MsFrizzle.** Real world flotsam and jetsam is very interesting. General, rated K.

**44. 6WYW. Monkey's Paw. MsFrizzle.** He should have known better... Mystery, Drama, rated K.

**45. 9MBK. It's a Setup. MsFrizzle.** The crazy thing about Dominoes is that they fall over. Humor, rated K.

**46. 9MBK. Enthralled. PuppetMaster55.** Spectra was fascinated by the halfa. Drama, rated K.

**47. 9MBK. Science and Math. MsFrizzle.** There are two approaches to putting the spirit back in spirit week. Humor, rated K.

**48. 8POL. Filing. sapphireswimming.** File that under, things it would have been good to know. Humor, rated K.

**49. 9MBK. Turning Point. sapphireswimming.** Kwan was going to be a hobo. General, rated K.

**50. 10SOG. Benefactor. PuppetMaster55.** Valerie should have been suspicious. Drama, rated K.

**51. 10SOG. Squeaky. PuppetMaster55.** Spooky chewed on his squeaky! Tragedy, rated K plus.

**52. 10SOG. Experimentation. NebulousMistress.** Vlad had plans. Humor, rated K.

**53. 10SOG. To Be a Good Dog. NebulousMistress.** That's all Cujo wanted to be. Angst, rated T.

**54. 11FTF. A Budding Frienship. truephan.** Klemper, meet Chilly-Billy. Friendship, rated K.

**55. 11FTF. Updated. sapphireswimming.** Lancer needed a new book title for this. Suspense / Humor, rated K.

**56. 11FTF. Golden. sapphireswimming.** He had a golden ticket. Drama, rated K.

**57. 11FTF. Remember My Name. sapphireswimming.** Maybe it wasn't a house fire. Drama, rated T.

**58. 12TOTY. . Phantom-Lightning.** What was the prize for winning again...? Friendship / Humor, rated K.

**59. 12TOTY. Once Again. NebulousMistress.** Once again, he ruled supreme. Humor, rated K.

**60. 10SOG. Human Resources. MsFrizzle.** How did Vlad find Valerie? Drama, rated K.

**61. 11FTF. Study Aids. MsFrizzle.** The Cramtastic Mach 5 was the best thing since sliced bread. Friendship / Humor, rated K.

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**Let me know if you have any comments or suggestions! And let the fun begin! ^^**


	2. 1MM Discovery

**Discovery**

by sapphireswimming

June 1, 2012

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Tucker walked up with a huge smile on his face. After all, it wasn't every day that your best friend managed to save the entire high school. "That was amazing, dude!"

"Thanks," Danny grinned, tucking the thermos' clip into one of his belt loops.

But despite saving Casper High, there was still a problem that needed to be addressed. It was a touchy subject, however, and Tucker wasn't quite sure how to go about bringing it up. He coughed slightly. "So, you're not going to tell you parents? I mean, about the half-ghost thing?"

He had seen the way Danny's alter ego had interacted with the rest of the Fentons. Not only had Danny passed up a perfectly golden opportunity to explain things to them then and there, but it was going to make it a lot harder to explain things later. It was best to do these things quickly. Like pulling off a band-aid.

"Nawww," Danny said with a smile on his face and a wave of his hand.

Tucker was genuinely surprised at Danny's now care-free attitude. He had been freaking out about this for weeks, but suddenly, everything was fine?

"But dude," Tucker protested, "we've been talking about this since the accident. You were going to tell them. We even practiced with you."

"I know..." Danny sighed. "But I think... I think I'm actually figuring out what these powers are for." He searched his heart. "They make me..."

"In a world of trouble!" Lancer loudly proclaimed as he stormed up to them, catching hold of Danny's collar.

Oh that's right. They had escaped right in the middle of detention, hadn't they? Oops.

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* * *

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and... followed up by a 100 word drabble on the same topic but a whole different track...

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Marching away with the vice-principal, Tucker found himself thinking that that was that. He sighed. Lancer did have the best timing, didn't he? Interrupting just when their conversation was getting interesting and important.

Danny was still beaming, too wrapped up in his new-found discovery to be upset about their extra super duty detention. Yet.

Tucker dragged his feet forward dejectedly. He didn't think that Danny would be willing to talk about this again... it would be too weird later on.

So he may never know what it was Danny had found in his powers that made him feel so important.

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**The plan is to watch Mystery Meat this week. Livestream ****_tonight _****at 7pm Eastern time. Links on dpsg1 . tumblr**

**PM me with any fics you want posted here.**


	3. 1MM The Truth

**I don't own DP and enjoy!**

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**The Truth  
**

by Oak Leaf Ninja

June 3, 2012

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"Actually...I need to tell you guys something..." he admitted, drooping slightly in posture. Jazz, absentmindedly twirling her red hair, was keenly focused on her Surviving Adolescence Through Therapy. Danny's father looked worriedly at his son, along with his mother.

"What is it sweetie?" she asked worriedly, putting a hand on Danny's shoulder. "You know you can tell us anything..." Jack perked up and waved around his Fenton Finder.

"Especially if it's about GHOSTS!" he boomed cheerfully. Maddie glared at him.

"Jack! Our son needs guidance on an important topic- what is it Danny?" she asked him softly. Danny rubbed his neck nervously.

"A-actually...I'm a ghost." He transformed into Danny Phantom in front of their astonished eyes.

"My poor baby!" sobbed Maddie as she hugged her son. "We'll get that infernal ghost out of you in no time!"

"You bet we will Danny boy...and then there will be no more ghost scum." his dad hissed, looking suspiciously at his son.

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	4. 1MM The Chase

**Chase**  
by Fluehatraya  
June 3, 2012

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Danny isn't alive, not really, and he knows this. He feels it, in the feeble beat of his heart and the ice in his veins, his body seeping cold. The first time attention is brought to it is when he goes back to school, and Sam grabs one of his arms to drag him off to something. She promptly lets go and flinches away, exclaiming the fact that he is freezing to all bystanders to hear. Danny winces; did she really have to proclaim it to the world?

He convinces her that he's just a bit cold. She frowns and tells him he should have worn a jacket when he left the house on that autumn morning.

But Danny doesn't feel the cold of the day, not really; his body is much more frigid and his mind is still defrosting from the numbness that had overtaken it after the Accident.

He doesn't feel human in his human body. At best he is a zombie with a human's mind, or maybe a ghost materialized in flesh that is kept alive by sheer will. After all, life and death are absolutes and he is confident that he is not alive. Who can argue, when his temperature is hypothermic and he hardly needs to breathe? When he can detach himself from gravity's bonds and pass through physical matter? The laws of the universe don't matter to him, not when he belongs to a lawless green realm.

Control over his powers came quickly, for it was a must. When he can no longer hole himself up in his room, mourning his loss (himself, and nobody else to mourn him), when he must integrate himself among humans (he feels so dirty, lying to them, tainting them with his dead presence) and knows that even if everybody in Amity Park (perhaps including himself, with how much he tries to deny the truth of what he is) is blind, deaf, and dumb, that his friends and family would surely catch on quickly. One of his friends is into the occult, his sister is over-protective, and his parents are ghost hunters (would they be ashamed of him? Would they mourn for him even if they knew he was dead, if they also knew that he was a ghost?) capable of connecting the living and dead realms (something that should never be), for Pete's sake!

The first time his ghost sense goes off, it frightens him. Not because he knows instinctively at that very moment that a ghost is near, but because it is an urging. It beckons him to seek out his ghostly kin, a primal urge to unite with his own kind. He doesn't belong here, in this warm and bright dimension with its cumbersome limits and fleeting lives.

Danny resolutely avoids the ghosts. Even when his own best friends (only friends, but can they still be best friends when separated by secrets and the matter of life and death?) are hoisted up in the air by malevolent ectopuses, he does not act, shed his deceitful human (but still dead) form and jump to their rescue. No, he cowers away, even as one of the ghosts affixes him with a stare the color of dried blood. There is no intelligence in that look, but they recognize him for what he is, and their expectations for him weighs heavily on his soul; he can't tell whether it's out of disappointing them, or if it's because they have them in the first place.

Fortunately the eye-contact is broken when his father leaps into the fray, forcing the ghosts to relinquish their human captives (so close to joining their numbers as one of them) and back into the portal. As the portal doors close, Danny feels himself drawn towards it and shudders away. No, he wasn't dead, not yet! He looks down at his hands; he's still human, isn't it?

His friends' glares tell him otherwise, though. Why didn't he leap to their defense? They could have been killed! If he was a true friend he would! If he was a human he would, because that is what humans do for their friends!

Danny feels shame, a vitriolic feeling that bubbles and churns and curdles in his belly, and it is not just because of his lack of response. It is also because, on a small and subconscious level, he wanted the two humans, his friends, to die. He wanted to see their feeble, short-lived and greatly limited bodies snap in front of him in the grip of the tentacles, to see their too warm blood flow as they were bit into and torn apart by the gaping maws of the ghost octopuses. Because then they would be dead like him, and they could be ghosts like him, and they could be best friends again!

They are humans with short lives and are quick to forgive him, however. Danny doesn't forgive himself, however. Even if it wasn't for a long time, he had wanted his friends to die, so that he wouldn't be alone, and now the thought of their living and that they could and can and he wants them to die plagues him.

So when the ghost of a cafeteria worker appears before them, threatening his friends for Sam's crime of changing the menu, he does not fight. He flies away and away, losing himself in the clouds so that he doesn't have to see. He may not stop the death of his friends, but at least he doesn't have to be there to see them. Maybe one day they can find each other and spend the rest of their afterlives together as best friends, because they will no longer have secrets and life and death between them. Danny smiles at that thought and decides to continue running. It will be like a game of tag; they will come chase after him eventually, and when they catch up to him they will all have a good laugh and be thankful that they could have it and are together again once more.

But while Danny continues to fly, his friends never come after him.

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	5. 1MM A Good Day to be a Ghost

**Small shorts based on the episodes... I want to contribute a few humor fics. I hope that's okay cause I already posted a picture and I don't want to overdue it... funny drabbles are what I can mainly contribute while I'm traveling. These just came to me while I was watching the first episode this morning XD So I'll share them with you anyways XD So for you, here are three shorts! Warning, I put visual details! XD**

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**A Good Day to be a Ghost  
**by Watson Baker

June 4, 2012

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_Take 1: Wrong Superkid_

"I wander what's on the other side of this portal?" Danny wondered out loud as he leaned forward towards the inside of the inactive hole in his parents lab. His white HAZMAT suit was put on ahead of time for safety precautions.

Sam snuck up to Danny and pushed him into the portal, giving Tucker a thumbs up when the job was done.

"Okay, he's in, turn it on Tucker!"

"Got it Sam!" he called back as he turned on the portal from the inside using his PDA. Before Danny could escape, the portal sprung to life with him inside.

Both former friends of Danny's watched with wide eyes and crossed fingers as their classmate screamed with pain in the green-lit portal. When it finished turning on, Danny fell out and onto the floor in a bunch of white smoke. The transformation was complete.

"Yay! We made a superhero!" both of them cheered with hands raised in the air, only to freeze in shock when they saw Danny.

The poor victim of the portal had red long claws of ecto energy flowing out of his hands that appeared to drip from the tips, mirroring blood. The black suit was tattered in some places, hair turned a ghostly white had spots of ectoplasm staining it green like his skull was shattered. His eyes were red with hate and merciless as he narrowed and trained his vision on the two humans who betrayed him.

"To bad, I'm evil! Muahahaha!" he yelled as he jumped at them.

"Run away!" they screeched as they bolted up the stairs, the recently turned evil Danny flying right behind them.

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_Take 2: Bad Costume_

"Are you sure you'll be okay Danny?" Sam asked as Danny walked into the portal without a HAZMAT suit on.

"Relax, there's nothing bad in here, it's just a hole with wires in it." He dismissed with a wave of his hand

"But your parents wear those suits for a reason dude," Tucker notified as they saw their friend go deeper into the cave.

"That's out of habit. Tucker, there's nothing to worry abou…"

Suddenly, Danny turned on the portal, causing the green light to flood the room. After the screaming and flashing lights, the portal died down, leaving the goth and geek to stare at their best friend who climbed out of the portal.

His hair was white and eyes ghostly green, and his colors on his shirt changed. The colors on his shirt inverted into grey and black, his shoes turned grey and black as well, and his blue jeans turned green.

"Ah! I look awful!" Danny cried as he stared at his horrible fashion statement.

"You should have went into the portal with your hazmat suit to prevent color clashes," Tucker said with a smile. Sam and Danny both glared at him as he took pictures of the halfa.

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_Take 3: Alternate Alternative _

"Eat it… all of it," Dash threatened as he watched the wimp stare at the mud pies.

Instead of chickening out or calling a food fight, Danny started stuffing his mouth with the dirt, humming as he took spoonful after spoonful of the stuff.

"It isn't that bad actually," Danny announced as he swallowed the last of it and hummed a merry tune.

After the ordeal, Danny went back to sitting with his friends, a big smile plastered on his face.

"Dude, how did you do that?" Tucker asked, not believing his friend really enjoyed the taste of dirt.

Danny took a swig of water and explained to his friends. "I just turned my taste buds intangible."

"Can you really do that?" Sam said is shock.

"I don't believe it! You would have to turn each taste bud intangible individually, or make your whole tongue intangible! You can't even stop yourself from going through the floor!" Tucker added as his best friend kicked back and relaxed on the cafeteria seat.

"I'm just a boss like that," Danny snickered.

Suddenly another Danny walked into the cafeteria, making his way towards his friends. "Hey guys, sorry I was late. I had to get out of my locker."

With wide eyes, both friends turned to where the other Danny was sitting, only to find him gone.

Sam picked up two things from the recently vacant seat and handed them to Danny. One thing on the chair was a weird looking medallion. The other thing was a list.

'Dear past Danny, make sure to fight that ghost terrorizing the school kitchen. You're going to be a hero someday. From, your Future. PS: Don't forget to start a food fight first.'

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**The end! ;3**


	6. 1MM Busboy

**Hurr, okay, this is random as crap. xDD**  
** And not my best writing. But I've wanted to do it ever sine I saw the scene for the very first time.**

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**Busboy**

by The Cinderninja

June 4, 2012

_Heavily inspired by my own experiences._

* * *

"Hey, Danny, catch!"

A plate was flying from across the room before he had a chance to turn around, yet somehow he still managed to catch it deftly in his left hand. Another came flying, this time no warning was offered, and he caught it in his free hand.

"Sorry." He called back over his shoulder, grinning. He winked, and the teenage girl responsible for the projectiles swooned a bit. "Gonna have to do better then that, Bennie."

"Next time! I promise!"

"Hey, ghost boy! Speed it up a bit before I have to replace you!"

"Yeah yeah." Danny floated leisurely backwards, slipping right through the wall and popping up next to his boss, working the cash. She gave a startled yelp and hoard at him as he grinned cheekily at her, tossing the dishes over his shoulder and landing them perfectly in the sink, stacked on top of each other.

"Ten points." Observed the dishwasher casually.

"Oi, slacker." Jenny glared at him. His boss, with her blond hair pulled back in a ponytail, stuck her hands on her hips and shook her head slightly. "Go clear your tables. You're not payed to show off."

Eyes narrowed. A challenge had been issued. Green eyes scanned the room, taking in every detail in an instant. He bolted up to the second layer of the restaurant - raised a few feet above the lower level, with a short half-wall and five step staircase between them.

"8 seconds. Tops. Let's go." On cue, the regulars burst into what could only be described as practiced and mastered choreography. The non-regulars watched on in amazement.

Danny caught a stack of dishes on one arm, while in constant motion. He spun around, abruptly stopping the motion of a saucer with his left hand, and raising it up to catch the cup that followed. He grinned as the crowd giggled or cheered. One man in the corner - not a regular - simply seemed confused.

Meanwhile, cutlery was flying, and Danny, of course, was easily catching it all in the precariously stacked saucer sitting atop one of his various stacks of plates. Even the kitchen had joined in to toss clean dishes at him. But no, nothing got past him. He was Danny Phantom, expert busboy. Master, even, of what had become nothing short of a sport.

A collective gasp rose up as it seemed the final dish fell short, and was going to shatter to the floor of the lower level. Without a seconds hesitation, Danny cartwheeled over the divide wall between levels, somehow not dropping any of the dishes balanced dangerously on top of him, dove forward, and caught the final dish between his teeth. He straightened up, looking smug. The customer crowd cheered happily.

Beep. The sound of a stopwatch.

"Seven seconds." Announced the dishwasher.

The plate dropped from his teeth onto one of the many stacks on his left arm. "No," he agreed, walking past Jenny into the kitchen, "but I'm damn good at it."


	7. 1MM Therapy

**Therapy**

by MsFrizzle

June 5, 2012

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Spike sat slouched on the name-scarred picnic table. The only reason he hadn't stalked off long ago was that she was kind of cute. It took less energy to just sit here and listen to her babble than to keep avoiding her.

She was sort of a puzzle. When she had first sought him out he thought it was because she was one of the straight and narrow girls who wanted to take a walk on the wild side. He liked the idea that others saw him as edgy and dangerous. It was better than the truth: scared and vulnerable.

It was sort of a camouflage he put on to avoid predators. He had read about it in some book he had found. The viceroy butterfly looked like the poisonous monarch butterfly so the hungry birds left it alone. The punk hair style, scowling look, ripped clothing and studs in his eyebrows nose and lip let him hide in plain sight.

Other animals sought safety in numbers or used some sort of special adaptation like claws or armor but he didn't have anything like that. If he had some sort of ability he could have joined the protection of the herd and hung out with the band geeks or the nerds. But he hadn't the talent or the brains. Then there were the gangs. But that fierce pack would turn on him once they found out he didn't actually have any teeth. The piercings and tattoos had hurt, but at least he hadn't actually hurt anyone else. The first time they asked him to help knock over the convenience store, he'd be revealed for the sap he was. No, his only choice was to be the lone wolf.

So that's why he was here sitting in a forgotten corner while the rest of the school rallied over lunch menus of all things. Did they have any idea how stupid that was? Unless they were on the school lunch program they would have no idea what it would be like to be grateful to have a lunch. They'd never had to scrounge for food from the leavings after the pack had had its fill. That was one of the problems with being the lone wolf. The only reason you weren't the lowest in the pecking order was because there was no one else.

The other problem with being the lone wolf was that you were …lonely. So even though it was dangerous to his reputation, he let the girl stay and talk. That, and if he dared admit it to himself, it was a bit flattering that someone wanted to listen to him.

He realized that she saw him as some sort of project. As if she could get extra credit or something. He tried to tune out the girl as she was earnestly 'trying to reach him'. Now she was telling him to confide in his parents.

As if his parents even cared how he felt. The only reason his parents hadn't thrown him out was because they didn't care enough to do so. They were too wrapped up in their own troubles to throw him out no matter how he dressed. It was the safety pin through his nose that had convinced him. That fashion statement hadn't lasted longer than the first time he tried to take off his shirt and it had gotten caught, but still, you'd think they'd say something. No wonder he chose to be a lone wolf.

"Spike, you have to open up to your parents. Be true to yourself and them. Tell them how you feel. I mean it's not like they're going to attack you or something."

Suddenly a net shot out and enveloped the girl. She was dragged back with a shriek by the attached rope to her parents. The Fentons were in their unmistakable orange and teal jump suits. In this town, dressing weird took on a whole new level.

Jazz pulled the net off her and was yelling at her parents. "I am not a ghost! You ambushed me, suffocated me with smoke, and worse, I was pulled away from Spike before he had his breakthrough! What do you have to say for yourselves?"

And he thought his parents were bad. He sure didn't want to get involved. Time to leave the crazy chick to her crazy family.

Then a new sound got his attention. There was something was going on at the rally. The distant chants and cheers had given way to screams. He slouched over to find out what was going on. Turning the corner he saw streams of panicked people. He was knocked to the side by a blast of wind. Globs of meat from the rally went flying past him in the gusts. He gaped in shock as the winds picked up the meat and collected it into a…a….meat monster! It waved its arms and roared.

He scrambled to his feet and was knocked flat again when a girl slammed into him. Without thinking, he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to her feet. Seeing the picnic table he dove for cover underneath it. There was an explosion and they were both splattered with ground beef. At least he hoped it was ground beef.

From between the gap between the table and the bench they could see glimpses of the meat monster and …

"What was that?"

"Are those ghosts?" whimpered the girl beside him. In her fear she clutched his chest. Instinct made him wrap his arms around her protectively.

The ground shook again and they huddled together hoping that they wouldn't be crushed or mangled in the crossfire. Spike's heart was pounding in his chest, his breath coming in short panicked gasps.

After an indeterminable time the fallout of meat stopped and Spike peered cautiously out. "Other than globs of meat everywhere, I don't see any signs of ghosts or monsters" he told the girl.

He expected that she would let go as soon as she knew the crisis was over, but she continued to grip his arm even after her breathing had calmed. She looked up at him though her glasses and hair smeared with raw meat. The look in her eyes was one he hadn't seen before. He stared back in wonder.

"Thank you." She said gratefully, still not letting go.

His own breathing hitched in his throat.

Here was a girl clinging to him not because he was a special pet project, not because he was everything that her parents told her to avoid, not because he represented danger and excitement, - all these were false images - but just because he was human. And humans needed human company.


	8. 1MM Why Jack Hates Horse Meat

**Jack Hates Horse Meat**

by ~BrightBlue925 (DA)

June 4, 2012

* * *

_"I was born many years ago in a log cabin in the woods. ...I don't exactly remember where, but I do remember that I wanted a pony-'never got the pony... In fact we had to eat horse-meat during the war... I had a problem with that..._

* * *

FLASH BACK:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Jack Fenton don't you dare argue with me!" screeched the young Jack Fenton's mother, her black hair tied back in a loose bun and her hazel eyes ablaze with fury at her boy's rebellious attitude.

"But Moooom!" moaned a younger Jack Fenton, his large lip trembling slightly.

"Jack," began Mrs. Fenton again, sighing slightly with exasperation. "You're a growing boy, and you need protein to grow up healthy and strong, so that one day you can fight ghosts like your father." continued Mrs. Fenton impatiently, nudging forward the plate of cooked horse-meat toward her still-pouting son.

"But-"

"Dear, it's either _THIS_, or nothing, your choice," interrupted Jack's mother, shrugging innocently before walking away, leaving the plate of horse-meat on the rickety table in front of her son. "But make up your mind soon, it's getting cold!" she yelled over her shoulder with a smirk.

After a few minutes, Jack's appetite won, and he gave in. After that day, Jack Fenton was never picky about his food again.

* * *

THE END XD


	9. TDP Molecules Got All Rearranged

**Molecules Got All Rearranged:  
**The Danny Phantom Theme Song

by Tay1019411

June 4, 2012

* * *

"What?" I turned to see Tucker and him together smiling at me. "Did you think of anything to help?"

"No," he said, dragging out the word. "But we did come up with something."

"Something that is very much needed in order to make this whole team thing work," Tucker continued.

"Something that is crucial to the building blocks of our very union as the unstoppable team we are," Danny finished.

I only raised my eyebrows, knowing that this was either going to be interesting or completely insulting to nature-most possibly both.

They looked at each other then looked back at me, sharing a silent message to start.

"Yo, Danny Phantom he was just fourteen when his parents built a very strange machine! It was designed to view a world unseen," Tucker rapped, making unnecessary hand motions.

"When it didn't quite work, his folks, they just quit," Danny took over. "Then, Danny took a look inside of it. There was a great big flash!"

What.

"Everything just changed!"

The.

"His molecules got all rearranged!"

Hell?

"When he first wo-"

"Stop!" I yelled, putting both my hands up while scrunching my face with disgust. "What. Is. That?"

Tucker looked at me as if I was dumb. "Hello, it's a theme song."

"And, how is this going to help us?" I quirked my eyebrow at them, crossing my arms. I swear am I the only one taking this seriously. We needed to think of a plan to stop Technus from taking over the city's electronics...again.

"We already explained that, Sam," Danny said, delivering one of his killer smiles. "So, do you like it?"

He gave me the puppy dog eyes.

I thought back on the cheesy rap, almost laughing. I smiled teasingly, "It was a little pitchy."

Danny crossed his arms, straightening as so he was looking down at me, dismay on his face. "Everybody's a critic."

Tucker hooked his arm around Danny's shoulder, smirking. "Don't worry, dude. She is just intimidated by our ridiculously insane beats."

I rolled my eyes, "Ya, 'cause that's it.

They weren't listening to me. "Hey we still need to think of a catchy chorus."

Danny looked at the ceiling, eyes squinting, in deep thought. "How bout 'Gonna catch 'em all 'cause he's Danny Phantom'?"

They both looked at each other, considering. Then, they shook their heads. Both saying, "Na."


	10. 1MM Drabbles

**Plan is to watch episode two (Parental Bonding) tomorrow (June 8). Livestream by catnip-tanger . tumblr at 7pm and 12am EST.  
**

* * *

**Drabbles for Through Danny Phantom**

by SRL541

June 7, 2012

* * *

**Successes  
**(150 words)

.

I'm just a regular student, a senior nowhere near as famous as that popular freshman Dash or his favorite victims. That's right; his victims are well-known.

Who doesn't know Danny Fenton? Everyone watches Dash, so they also see his targets. Danny's the one Dash bullies the most; the klutz who "dropped" thirty-four beakers in the past month; the one who started that "food" fight.

His "girlfriend" had enough influence to change the school menu for a week and organize a group of vegetarians in one night. His other friend coordinated a group of meat-lovers against her.

That freshman trio has much talent, especially Danny. Younger students might not notice, but his "clumsiness" is not normal… Connect this with how that ghost at the rally sounded just like him.

Others may compare them to that future-professional-football-player freshman and think they are only freaks; but they are not. They are future successes.

.

* * *

**Memoir**  
(100 words)

.

I am starting this memoir due to my parents' obsessions and my brother's fragile age. I will record actions performed by my parents that may harm the delicate mind of a fourteen-year-old child.

Entry #1: My parents cornered Danny with a "ghost detector." This may cause feelings of inaccuracy and disturb the parent-child relationship by cultivating fear.

Entry #2: The bread my mother toasted became alive. This may distort perspectives on reality, already affected by life's differences from childhood ignorance.

Entry #3: My parents assaulted me! They thought that I was a ghost! I will expand this when I calmer…

.

* * *

**Responsibility**  
(100 words)

.

Three: the number of times I saw Danny almost dying in his fight against that cafeteria ghost…

The first was when she hurled a mass of plates at him. The possible trauma from that weight at that speed on his scrawny form…

Second was when she almost impaled his body with dozens of kebabs. There were many of them, and they were very fast.

Third was his free fall. If he hadn't changed back…

But, as a half-ghost, he is the only one who can survive such dangers. By default, he is the only one to take on the responsibility.

.

* * *

**A/N: First time writing drabbles. I didn't think they would be this hard...**

**I know nothing about psychology, so don't believe the terms in Memoir.**

**SRL541**


	11. 1MM Jack and His War

**Jack and His War:  
A Danny Phantom Drabble  
**

by QueenyLeAcH

June 7, 2012

* * *

**.  
**

Danny POV

.

I was huffing and puffing as though I was the Big Bad Wolf preparing to blow down the Three Little Pig's brick house. Only half of my mind was on what my father was saying, as per usual, but when he mentioned the 'War' I tuned in. Horse meat? Ewwww. Inwardly, I shuddered. Then I started thinking, _What war? Dad is barely fifty. So, unless my history grade is worse than I think it is, there shouldn't have been a war in his lifetime. At least, not one with a food shortage._

And still he babbled on about his terrible childhood. Do you think he'd notice if I just left?

.

* * *

**Gah. Don't listen to me, apparently I don't know what I'm saying. Today and for the rest of the week, we are watching episode 2. Which is _Parental Bonding_. Not _One of a Kind_, as I'd accidentally told people before. My bad. XP**


	12. 1MM Serious

**Averia brought up a really good question... if you finish / come up with something for an earlier episode, like Mystery Meat, in several weeks from now, still feel free to submit it. It will be out of order, but still here. :3 But it would be really nice if the bulk of stuff happened during the week of the episode, so please don't take this as an excuse to send in your episode two stuff next June. XP**

* * *

**Serious  
**

by sapphireswimming

June 8, 2012

* * *

.

"You can't possibly be serious," the woman said slowly. Unbelievingly. Impatiently. At her wit's end.

"But I am," he protested, with a hint of panic in his voice. The need for someone… anyone… to believe him.

The redhead looked at the man with a sarcastically quirked eyebrow as she straightened up the folder on the glass table in front of her. Then she folded her hands ever so elegantly and said, "You mean to tell me that not only do you now believe in the supernatural—you, they guy who refused to every step inside a church or watch a horror film in his life—now believe in the supernatural, but beyond that even, you are trying to tell me that the reason you were late for your business meeting—the meeting that you had to schedule months in advance…"

She broke off here to start another rant, fuelled by the righteous indignation of a manager who had spent far too much time and effort into setting up a single meeting that could have changed everything.

"Do you have any idea how hard it is to get an appointment with Vlad Masters? The man's a billionaire. He owns companies around the world and he rarely, let me repeat, rarely… as in once in a month of Mondays… lets any outsiders meet with him unless they're the president of the next company he's looking to buy."

She stared at him accusingly. "You were going to be able to. But you missed that appointment. You lost… that opportunity. Not only did you lose it, but Masters will brand you… and this company…" she accentuated every word with a hard tap of her finger against her files. "As a failure for the rest of his life. He will refuse to have anything to do with us ever again."

She stood up and paced the room for a few hectic seconds, her heels driving into the marble floor as if she were trying to crack it. After putting her hands to her head and breathing heavily for a count to ten, she turned back to the man sitting at the table.

She explained, "He has refused point blank to let us reschedule. Every time I try to call, I get put on hold or hung up on. The last time, it wouldn't even let the number through. He's blocked it. We are never— do you hear me?— never ever going to go anywhere now."

She rested her hands on the table and leaned in closer.

"Masters is the one who makes or breaks you. What he says is law for every single business the world over. We were never going to get another opportunity like that again and you blew it. Before you even got there—oh! and that's not even the best part. That comes next. Because you said the reason that you missed this meeting was because you were attacked by…" she was pointing her finger at him, barely able to keep her words straight as her tone of voice fell dangerously low. "Let me get this straight… a ghost?"

"Not attacked, exactly." The man fidgeted in his seat and straightened his tie.

"Not… attacked… exactly?" She fumed.

"No. He… it… flew through the plane. And…" his eyes flickered down before returning to the irate stare of his boss. "…and it grabbed my glass of water."

She stared, unmoving, for a full twenty seconds before exploding.

"You miss a meeting with Vlad Masters and you have the nerve to tell me that the reason is because a freak of a spectral hallucination took your cup of water?"

"Yes…" he managed in almost a whimper. "It was the most harrowing experience of my life. Look at me, my hands are shaking."

"Your hands are shaking? Your hands are shaking?" she gasped. "They'd better be shaking because in about five seconds I'm going to tear you limb from limb!"

"No, but the delay wasn't my fault, Susan! I know you think it was, but I was ready to go on with the meeting, I was going to go right ahead. I was planning on heading straight to Masters', honest I was—!"

"Then what, in heaven's name, stopped you?"

"They had to emergency land the airplane. The stewardess serving me fainted and they thought she had gone into cardiac arrest. All of the other passengers were screaming too and the pilot couldn't calm anyone down until he contacted Midway for an emergency landing."

He looked up and was finally able to take a breath when he saw that the woman didn't look ready to kill him that instant but was ready to continue listening to what he had to say.

"Then we were ushered off the plane and all had to give statements before they let us take a different flight. And I tried to get there, honestly I did, but the plane was… we took off… I didn't get there until nearly three hours after the appointment was supposed to start, but I even paid the cabby fifty dollars extra to get me there in under twenty minutes."

He stared at her, pleading. "I did everything that I could. It was not humanly possible to make it to that meeting in time."

He blinked and looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Maybe… maybe if I had ghost powers, I might have made it…"

Susan gave a strangled sort of noise and left the conference room, slamming the door behind her until the glass walls rattled.

.

* * *

**Gah. Don't listen to me, apparently I don't know what I'm saying. For the rest of the week, we are watching episode 2. Which is _Parental Bonding_. Not _One of a Kind_, as I'd accidentally told people before. My bad. XP**


	13. 2PB Four Drabbles

**Lame title? Yeah, but accurate. Anywho, here are four drabbles, two of them inspired while watching the episode, the other two inspired by Spirits-of-Kin's "Drabble Ideas." So the credit for those two partially belongs to her. (Drabbles "So They Do Care" and "Whoa~")**

* * *

**Four Drabbles Inspired by Episode 2  
**

by QueenyLeAcH

June 8, 2012

* * *

Hypnotizing  
Sam POV

.

She had to be a hypnotist, or a siren, maybe even a witch. Even though witches are usually cool, this one's like an evil Glinda of the North. Either way, there _had_ to be some explanation for why every boy in Casper High drooled over her. She wasn't _that_pretty.

"A girl like that's a dime a dozen," I said, fully annoyed by this turn of events. I turned to bite into my sandwich when I heard Danny and Tucker rummaging in their pockets for loose change.

"How much you got?" Danny said.

That was the last straw. I wanted to tell the boy to go fly a kite, but I didn't. And like the good friend I am, I sent him off with my best wishes, while also secretly hoping that he'd be turned down. It was unexpected when he lost his pants. I know I had to hold back my own giggles.

.

**Sam sounds evil... Ahh well, I like it.**

* * *

So They Do Care  
Sam POV

.

I stared at the pile of black fabric before me. It was so different from all the other dresses my parents had bought for me. I was fully expecting something with frills and the dreaded color yellow, but this... This was unexpected. I didn't need to alter it in any way. Not even a little bit. It fit perfectly. Who knew they actually knew my dress size?

I smiled slightly. Somehow it seemed that, for once, they finally cared what I liked.

.

**Again... Started out Sam... Ended... Not Sam. So very sorry.**

* * *

Whoa~ Tucker POV

.

I felt Danny leave my body and was fully prepared to rip him a new one, then the door opened behind me. I turned so that I could explain to Sam what really happened, but when I saw her standing in the doorway in her stunning violet and black dress (one that fitted her perfectly, I might add) I could only stare.

Then she grabbed my hand and we were racing down the stairs and toward Casper High. The action snapped me out of my hormone induced daze, but it also alerted me to the fact that Sam really _did_ want to go to the dance, and I just couldn't dash her hopes. I kept quiet and hurried on behind her.

.

**Best one yet!**

* * *

TUCKER!  
Danny POV

.

"So, Tuck. Can I have the amulet back?" I asked, reaching for the object at hand.

"Why do you want it back?"

I raised my eyebrow, suspicious. "To put it in a safe place." I scanned my best friend, looking for the shine of the gold piece. "Tucker, where did it go?" I narrowed my eyes.

"Well... You see... Therewasthisghostandshewouldn'."

I blinked once... twice. "TUCKER!"

.

**Ever wonder how that amulet ended back in the ghost zone? This is my theory.**

* * *

**Anywho, those are my drabbles for this week. Chao!**

**-LeAcH**


	14. 2PB Shattered

**Accompanying artwork on DA:** srl541. deviantart. (com/) art/Episode-2-Art-Attempt-307291230 (no spaces or parentheses)

* * *

**Shattered**  
A "Parental Bonding" fanfiction

By SRL541

June 15, 2012

* * *

I'm only aware of three things: the sick mix of ectoplasm and blood that I cannot look away from; the stupid, insidious amulet that started the whole event; and my wet tears of regret that can never bring him back.

These pieces dizzily whirl in my head as I start to feel faint, and my conscious world shatters with one thought: It was all my fault.

* * *

It started with Paulina, that shallow fake. I had been glad that my best friend Danny had finally gotten what he wanted, that he finally succeeded in asking Paulina out to the dance. So, I went to apologize to her for calling her "shallow". When I found that she had been playing him, only accepting Danny for revenge against me, I was furious.

How could she trick sweet, clueless Danny for my actions?

I was so angry at her that I couldn't think clearly. Just before rage overtook me, I realized with a twinge of despair that Paulina had just placed the amulet around my neck. That meant that Danny would have to fight me…

Then I saw red.

I could only concentrate on a few things. The amulet had blurred my red vision, and I had felt myself morph… If the situation wasn't like this, I would have thought that it was cool to become a dragon…

But the situation was bad. I couldn't seem to control my body, and the red filter made things even more confusing. My mind was overwhelmed with the feelings of anger and power.

I faintly felt myself grab Paulina and break the ceiling. The need for revenge dominated my mind, and I would fly off with her to have my vengeance. She must pay for using Danny's feelings so carelessly.

Something hit me down. I realized that I had crashed into the school field. The person who made me crash yelled something at me. I think I growled something back.

The person took Paulina from my hands. I needed Paulina; she had hurt Danny!

I will forever regret what happened next.

In my attempt to retrieve Paulina, I swung my tail with a bone-crushing force. The person cried out in pain. Somehow, he managed to throw Paulina down to a soft patch of grass, where she would be bruised but generally fine. He didn't have as much luck…

With his scream of pain, I had come out of my rage-filled rampage. As I had morphed back into a human, my vision cleared. A ton of guilt had smashed my soul.

… The person had been Danny, and he was lying in the bleachers with a growing puddle of ectoplasm and blood. His head was tilted at an abnormal angle.

There was no way that he was still alive.

How ironic was it that I had killed him because I wanted to have revenge for him? That I killed the hero I gave ghost powers to when he was trying to save me? How wrong was it that I had killed my best friend, the one I secretly loved?

And with that, the beautiful, glass structure of my world shattered. And… there was no possible way that I could ever reconnect its fragments.

* * *

In the ethereal depths of the Ghost Zone, the brow of a powerful entity furrowed. The ghost muttered something about corrupted timelines and then gestured with the staff in his hand.

In the human realm, all existence froze like porcelain statues as the words "time out" echoed softly, and the fragments reattached.

* * *

**A/N: I woke up early to steal my brother's laptop and write this. He wouldn't let me use it before, and other devices that have access to the internet are mostly occupied. :P**

**This is my experimentation with first person and with different tenses. It accompanies the picture that I attempted to draw…**

**I am aware that "look away from" includes a hanging preposition, and there are other errors. Since it's supposed to be from Sam's perspective, I felt that it was okay to leave them.**

**Although, if you see errors in tense, please tell me. I was really confused on when to use past-perfect tense and other tenses.**

**I have been watching the Livestream and don't have immediate access to the episode (but I read the article on the wiki), so some details could be inaccurate. I concluded with Clockwork (who has not been introduced into the series yet) because I wanted to include at least some hope, even if it might not fit with the rest of the story.**

**Sorry if Sam may seem OOC. For some reason, I can't connect with her that well. It might be the result of my personality, since she's fiery and rebellious while I am less involved and generally obedient.**

**This A/N is long… I shall end it now, then. ^^;**


	15. 2PB Crazy

**Blah. My original idea was so much better than this turned out. *grumbles***

* * *

**Crazy**  
A "Parental Bonding" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

June 16, 2012

* * *

.

Danny stood still, stopped dead in his tracks as took in the scene. A few weeks ago, he probably would have lost control of his flight and crashed to the ground, but since his encounter with the meat monsters and demonic lunch lady with her salads of doom, he had gained a bit more in the ways of staying in the air despite surprises.

Didn't help him get over the surprise and quicker, though.

He looked back and forth, his head swings almost comic in their sweeping scope.

There, above him, was the snarling scaly head of a gigantic horned creature that should only exist in fairy tale books. The golden amulet hung heavy around its neck, fueling the magic that kept it flying around his city, surrounded by its sickly ghostly glow.

And over here, in those wicked claws, so far away from the rest of the creature that it seemed impossible that anything could be _that big_, hung the limp body of a dark haired girl.

He had gone on a date with a dragon?

What was he thinking when he asked her out? Sam might be right about Paulina. Or maybe being a dragon was even worse than being a witch. He wasn't really sure...

Danny looked again at the monster, sizing it up, taking in its huge girth and wondering how in the world he would be able to take it on and survive.

Danny then glanced at the girl, hoping that Sam was just knocked out and not actually injured.

The bright shade of pink made him reconsider, however, the idea that the girl in the claw was actually Sam. She wouldn't be caught dead wearing the thing.

He swallowed. Hopefully that wasn't the case.

But no, the girl... he knew her... it wasn't Sam at all. It was... Paulina?

What...?

His eyes flickered back up to the dragon. The dragon should have been Paulina. She was the one who had had the amulet… the one so easily influenced by emotions... but if she was the captive of the dragon... who had been transformed?

The only other person who could have been around it was... oh.

Oh.

Danny shook his head disbelievingly as the only reasonable answer presented itself. It was Sam. He was going to have to fight Dragon-Sam.

Forming fists and gearing up for a burst of flight, he muttered, "This has got to be the craziest thing I've ever done!"

.

* * *

**Livestream tonight at 7pm and 12am EST at livestream . ( c o m ) / pieinthesky**

**Be sure to check out the DeviantArt group #Through-DP for more stories and artwork! :D  
**


	16. 2PB Belt

**Belt**  
A "Parental Bonding" fanfiction

By Phantom-Lightning

June 16, 2012

* * *

"Hey Sam!" Danny called to his friend.

She turned around, wondering why he was running towards her with a ridiculous smile on his face.

"What is it, Danny?" Sam asked, not really sure if she wanted to know what he was so excited about.

"I finally got a belt!" Danny said, still grinning like a goofball.

"And you're telling me this... why again?" Sam said, still unsure of whether or not she should respond.

"It means my pants won't fall down anymore!" he said, gesturing. He dropped his voice down to a whisper and said, "And it's phaseproof, too, so my intangibility won't be able to affect it. Pretty good idea, isn't it?" Danny said, still smiling like that. To be honest, Sam was starting to be creeped out by the way he kept smiling through all that.

Thankfully, the second bell rang, and Sam ran off to her class.

Even though her back was turned, she knew Danny was still smiling as he stood there in the empty hallway.

He was going to get a detention.

.

Danny stared at the giant ghost dragon in the mall. He shifted into ghost form, and realized that something was very, very, wrong. He looked down at himself and he saw...

A glowing belt.

* * *

**Guys, no pressure if you haven't finished something you'd planned for this week. I can still post it later. And you don't even have to write something every episode. This isn't supposed to be stressful at all. That being said, we'd still love to see your ideas if you've got them. But don't burn out at the beginning! XD  
**


	17. 2PB Beautiful

**Heya everyone! This story goes from past tense to present and then to past...if I say why it would spoil it, so enjoy! I don't own DP (yet...MWHAHAHAHAHA!)**

* * *

**Beautiful**  
A "Parental Bonding" fanfiction

By Oak Leaf Ninja

June 17, 2012

* * *

.

The first thought he had was how beautiful she was.

...The swift line of motion of her legs entranced him, and he had to blink- twice...

"Danny?" asked Sam questionably, "What's the matter? It looks like you've seen the shallow witch." Danny gulped and rubbed his neck nervously.

"Wh-what? No, I didn't see that shallow witch."

...Her purple lips seemed more tempting with each passing moment..

Her eyebrow raised.  
"Alright then..." she said. An awkward silence ensued for a bit, and then it happened.

...he couldn't wait any longer...

He suddenly clasped her waist and dipped her, causing Sam to yelp in surprise.

"Da-Danny?" she stuttered, looking into his lust filled eyes. He smiled devilishly and leaned in, lips puckered up.

"Don't worry sweetie...morning has arrived..." he whispered huskily.

.

* * *

.

Bolting upright, Sam clutches her blanket, breathing heavily. Beads of sweat roll down her pale face.

"It was a dream..." she whispers in disbelief. She shivers in her black camisole and pulls her warm blanket closer. Glancing at the calendar, she notes the date.

"Stupid school dance." it read. Sam sighs and runs a hand through her hair.

"Sam?" questions a familiar voice. Sam yelps and glances around frantically. No one is there, but she knows someone is.

"Danny! You scared the wits out of me!" she scolds. She shivers again, and then she realizes she was still in her skimpy pajamas. In front of Danny. He reappears and glances at her outfit for the first time. His face becomes a crimson red and he smiles sheepishly, rubbing his neck.

"I-Er, got to get T-something from my house...yea.." he stutters, quickly phasing through the window and leaving a flustered Sam.

"Danny-dang it! Fun day ahead of me..." she says sarcastically, blushing bright red herself. She glances wistfully at her closet, and slowly begins to walk towards it. Pulling out a custom made dress, she sighs and put it back, knowing full well no boy will ask her to the dance.

.

* * *

.

The only thought Danny had as he flew home was how beautiful her simple elegance was.

.

* * *

**FYI to the authors: you can reply to your stories' reviews from the review page of this fic. PM me if you have questions.  
**


	18. 1MM A Flicker of Doubt

**A Flicker of Doubt**

A "Mystery Meat" fanfiction

By Avearia

June 18, 2012

* * *

.

Long after Jack had fallen asleep beside her, his snores ringing through the house, Maddie continued to lie awake.

She stared at the ceiling, a mixture of ghosts and guilt on her mind. Even now, with the day drawing to an end, she couldn't shake the doubt that was rising in her mind.

"_I! Am not! A GHOST!" _Jazz's words rang in her ears, making her grimace. She and Jack had completely stepped over the line. Hunting ghosts, that was one thing. But attacking their only daughter with ghost hunting equipment? What had they been _thinking? _She could've been hurt!

And how had they drawn the conclusion that Jazz was a ghost? Jazz was a living, breathing human. Sure, she'd been snappish lately, but just because she didn't support her parents' ghost hunting endeavors didn't mean she was a ghost. Her heart was still beating in her chest—and it was impossible to be both alive and a ghost at the same time.

How had that absurd idea even worked its way into Maddie's brain?

She closed her eyes, grabbing a fistful of her bedsheets. No—she knew where that idea came from. Ever since the ghost portal had sprung to life, all the Fenton ghost hunting equipment had been going haywire. _Especially _when the children were around. There was a ghost in the house, but where? After their inventions had gone off one too many times around the children, they'd asked themselves—why? Evidence pointed, time and time again, that strong amounts of ectoplasm was lingering around her children.

It made sense for Danny. Ever since he'd been zapped by the portal, he'd been surrounded by residual ectoplasm. Of course the inventions would go off around him. But Jazz? The only explanation was: she was a ghost.

They were wrong. Jazz wasn't a ghost, and had soundly berated them for attacking her. It was absurd, too. Ghost _and _human? Dead _and _alive? It wasn't possible. That would make a person, what, half-ghost? Some kind of bizarre hybrid? Goodbye sanity, hello Science-Fiction.

No. Ghosts existed—she'd seen her first ghost this afternoon, even—but there was no way she could accept that someone could be dead and alive at the same time. No matter how many times her equipment went off around them, Jazz was not a ghost, and neither was Danny.

(Something niggled in the back of her mind; a nagging doubt; something significant that she'd missed…)

Maddie shook her head and rolled on her side, closing her eyes to sleep at last. She vowed, just as she fell asleep, that no matter how much scientific evidence there was, no matter how many times her inventions insisted a ghost had replaced one of her family, no matter how great her suspicions grew…

She would never accuse any of them—Jack, Jazz, or Danny—of being a ghost again.

.

* * *

_My theory of why Maddie never noticed the Fenton-Phantom connection. _


	19. 2PB Elegance

**Elegance**

A "Parental Bonding" fanfiction

By Avearia

* * *

.

"I'm not going to the dance."

Sam crossed her arms and glared, hoping it would get her message across. Her mother didn't seem to understand. Sam had been complaining and beating on that dumb dance for weeks since it was announced. There was no way she was going to be caught dead at that frivolous party.

Her classmates had been talking about it all week—"The dance is coming up!" "What should I wear!" "Omigosh no one's asked me out yet!" The whole fakeness of the event made her sick. The popular kids used it as a benchmark to tell who was important.

She didn't want her life to revolve around that kind of pressure. Beauty wasn't everything.

But no, her mother only saw the Dance as a chance to dress her daughter up. "Come on, Sammykins, you'll love it," she insisted, dragging Sam across the hall and over to her closet.

Sam eyed the closet and scowled, eyeing the pastel pinks and floral dresses that comprised her mom's wardrobe. Sam's stomach churned as she imagined wearing one of those _things_. "For the last time, I said I'm not going to the dance!" she snapped. "It's stupid social hype, and someone will probably try to spike the punch, and no guy will ask me out anyway! I refuse to—"

Sam stopped short as her mother drew a dress from the closet. No flowers. No pastels.

The main portion was a black, lace-up bodice, a little low for her tastes but no doubt perfectly measured to accentuate her curves. Fishnet sleeves, elbow-length gloves, and a long, flowing, pleated purple skirt that sparkled like stars in the night sky.

It was… perfect.

She stared at it for some time, and when she finally looked up, she saw her mom smiling. "Do you like it?" asked her mother—Sam belatedly wondered what kind of goofy, dazed look she must have on her own face.

Before she could answer, Pamela dragged her into the walk-in closet. "Come on, let's see if it fits," she said, and Sam could only nod.

Usually, her mom had to drag her kicking and screaming to try on a dress. For this one, Sam was mostly silent, allowing her mother to slip the dress over her head and do the many straps and zippers. A part of her was just humoring her mother-for once, her mom had taken Sam's tastes into consideration instead of forcing a skimpy yellow dress on her. Part of her wanted to reward her mom for doing something sorta right for a change.

A smaller, traitorous part of Sam's mind truly wanted to try on the dress. Conflicted between loving and hating the dress, Sam chose only to sit quietly and see the end result.

Soon Sam was standing before a full-length mirror, looking at the reflection as if it was a stranger. The dress made her feel like a different person. It just flowed and wrapped and cascaded down her body, elegant and strange.

"A perfect fit," her mother said, sounding pleased. Pamela stepped away, eyeing her baby girl with a smile, and clapped her hands together. "Well, Sammykins, do you like it? Give it a twirl."

Numbly, Sam touched the skirt, picking up one end with her fingertips. The reflection mimicked her movements. _So that's… really me? That's what I look like? _She wondered. The person in the mirror stared back, shining like a dark Queen.

Hesitating slightly, she stepped back from the mirror, and spun.

The dress billowed out from her ankles, twirling through the air. She spun and she spun, feeling the cloth floating around her body. When she stopped, a bit dizzy, she caught a glimpse of the long purple dress arching around her body like a beautiful wave following her every step.

Sam had to blink at her own reflection. _I—I look… _she smoothed her hands against the front of the dress—_I look **pretty**. _

And that was just the dress, she realized. With a hair updo, a bit of nice makeup, mascara—she would be positively glowing. Her mother always told her she was pretty, but Sam never believed it, not until now. This dress made her feel… beautiful.

A black pit of guilt consumed her, and her eyes flickered to the floor.

Sam never thought she'd be one of _those girls_ who liked dressing up or wearing makeup. She never wanted to be someone who only felt beautiful when she wore nice things—she was her own person! She was strong! She didn't need any fancy clothes to know that!

...How could a simple dress make her feel so giddy?

Sam turned her eyes to the mirror again. When she saw her reflection, she didn't see the girl who liked wearing combat boots and playing Doom. When she looked in the mirror, she saw—

She saw Paulina.

Sam turned. Her mother watched, breath held in anticipation, waiting for her daughter to say _yes, it's beautiful _or _I can't wait to wear it to the dance_ or _you're the best mom ever._

Her mom's hopeful expression was the only thing that made her bite back on her acidic sarcasm. Sam mumbled that it was a nice dress but she wasn't going to the dance, thank you anyway.

Her mom looked crestfallen, but only sighed. "Maybe another time," she said as Sam shed the beautiful dress and donned her tank top and combat boots again. Sam shivered, the feeling of _Paulina _following her out of the room. Well, not quite—perhaps Paulina would never be caught wearing something so… gothic.

"Well dear, if you change your mind, the dress will be in here," Pamela called, hanging the dress in her closet.

Sam looked down. "No one would ask me to the dance, anyway," she mumbled, then felt sadder, angrier, because it was true.

Her mother just shrugged. "Maybe one of those _boys _you hang out with will ask you out."

Sam lingered, frowning. She wasn't going to the dance. She refused to go to some stupid dance _just _to dress up and look pretty. She wouldn't go for such a shallow reason.

But…

Sam looked down, and then, making sure her mother wasn't looking, she poised herself, twirling in place.

She imagined the dress's trail flowing behind her as she spun. She felt like she had when she'd worn that dress. Elegant. Beautiful.

Maybe if one of her friends asked, she'd go. She'd have an excuse, someone to accompany, so they wouldn't have to go dateless. And of course, if that happened, she'd need the proper attire.

With that in mind, Sam headed out, half-skipping to her room. A small part of her really hoped Tucker or Danny would ask her to the dance.

After all, she wouldn't mind feeling beautiful again.

.

* * *

_Sam's still a teenager. I like imagining Sam as secretly insecure. _

_I think Sam wants to distance herself as much as possible from the "Pretty, Shallow" crowd, aka Paulina. She doesn't want to be Paulina so she avoids everything remotely girly. She's got a gothic image to maintain after all… _

_Maybe someday she'll learn it's ok to be pretty as well as being strong. _


	20. 1MM Beakers

**AN: Hello. My pen name is Pterodactyl. I do not own Danny Phantom, that honor belongs to the Nicktoons franchise and the Billionaire Inc Animation firm. **

** I never really wrote much in the fandom, merely read practically all of it before 2008. Literally all of it before 2006. I've watched the trends in popular fanfic, learned how to analyze fiction, and loved most of what I read on here. **

** I only recently found out about Sapphireswimming's idea to try to reinvigorate the fandom through the year of DP... 53 episodes, 53 weeks. OK, so not quite a year. But close enough for me. And frankly, I hope that this works. Because, seriously... nobody save for a few writers has written anything that I haven't already seen been done on here. **

** The problem in my opinion is that there are too many layers of fanon on top of the canon for anyone to really remember the canon show any more. I'm guilty of it myself in this little piece (nowhere in the original show is it said, or hinted at, that Danny has a miraculous healing rate) **

** All I can hope for is that this project makes everybody take a look at the original show again, because one of the things I see on here the least is ficlets based on the show itself. IE. Exactly what this corroboration is. My Toast to Sapphireswimming and all the other ficlet authors in this oneshot medley.**

* * *

**Beakers**

A "Mystery Meat" fanfiction

by Pterodactyl

June 20, 2012

* * *

.

It was science class. Danny's favorite subject. And no matter how much he loved the topic, he hated the growing glare that was coming from Mr. Faluca's face as yet another beaker tinkled and crashed onto the floor in between the table set up with the day's necessary materials and Danny's lab station.

Due to the nature of the specific chemicals that they were working with, all of the spills for the day had created a section of the floor with acid burns. Something Danny unfortunately had experience with, his home life being what it was. So he quickly got out the broom and mop from where he had put the two utensils the last time he dropped a beaker, which was a mere five minutes ago. Danny gave a sigh, he understood Mr. Faluca's glare all too well.

Too bad that there was nothing he could do about it. His assigned lab partner Nathan was out sick... again. There was nobody else out from the class, and lab stations could only hold two people at a time (legally, Sam had checked). His other problem, the one that had caused the repeated beaker droppings, was hopefully just residual ectoplasmic residue acting up from that shock from the portal a week ago.

Never mind the fact that any previous residual ectoplasm from anything his parents did only lasted a couple hours at the most. The one day that they caused everything in the house to float was fun though. Jazz hated it, but she hated everything their parents did in relation to ghosts. Which was an opinion Danny was starting to agree with. This latest beaker had proven that fact.

The background murmuring of the classroom stopped for a second once everybody realized Danny had dropped yet another beaker. The fifth this period alone! Mikey, a small statured and befreckled costudent snickered from across the room, if Danny didn't know that he was Dash's second favorite he would have retaliated more. As it was, he gave a weak glare and went about cleaning up his most recent mess. More students joined in on the fun, and soon the whole class, not including Mr. Faluca, was at the very least snickering.

The ectoplasmic residue issue flared up again and just as Danny got the glass off of the floor his arm turned intangible. He dropped the dustpan filled with acidic shards of glass onto the floor again.

Rolls of laughter continued to peel from the other students in the room. After all, it was only fifteen or so minutes into the experimental phase of chemistry class. It was also his fifth beaker.

Danny glanced up at Mr. Faluca in desperation. Even though they were not extremely close, Faluca was the only teacher whom Danny had told about his ghost encounter the week previous. Faluca thankfully made eye contact and subtly nodded.

"Class!" boomed out of the very short teacher in his rather nasally voice, "I assure you that you will need all of the time you can gather for the rest of today's lab. Mr. Fenton, please go out to the hall and calm your nerves, I know that you are still shaken up by your near death experience. I'll finish cleaning up the spill before it eats through the floor."

Danny watched the stout teacher walk across the room and grab the handle of the broom from him. The teen's lips turned upwards in a thankful grin before mouthing a drowned out "Thanks."

Faluca continued talking, "Just so you know Mr. Fenton, many more broken beakers and I'll have to ban you from handling all fragile school equipment. Now get going before your face turns even more red."

Danny nodded in agreement. The constant snickering behind his back made him nervous, and at that moment all he wanted was to get out of that classroom unharmed. His social standing in school at least couldn't take more of a beating. But the constant ectoplasmic residue flareups were really giving a beating to his knees and face.

His front leg turned intangible and he toppled head first into his dropped glass shards. Reflexively his arms shot out in front of his face and landed smack dab on top of a razor sharp piece of silicon shrapnel. Danny got up and looked at his right hand. There didn't appear to be a cut anywhere on it.

"I- I'm fine Mr Faluca. No harm," the black haired teenager stuttered out.

After rinsing his hand off with soapy water and normal water, Danny walked out of the classroom without further incident.

Only to feel like his hand was still wet.

Danny held up his right hand to his face. Not only was it practically coated with blood, but the blood seemed to be glowing green. His blood was glowing green. Danny gave a startled gasp before running to the nearest bathroom.

He started up the water in the (admittedly disgusting) bathroom. The cool water stung when it hit the wound. But quickly washed away the blood from the gash. Danny poked at it with his left hand, trying to get the last of the green stuff out of his wound. He didn't want another ecto-infection. To his dismay it looked like the green goop coming from his blood was already coagulated.

That was one of the worst things possible to have happen.

In the few seconds that it took for Danny to realize his blood coagulated green, the goop had hardened already and started to peel off. Just like a scab. Except that this was distinctly green and glowing instead of the usual color of purple-ish brown.

Danny gave another blink and the scab fell off into the sink. No scar, no wound, nothing showed for the recent occurrence and Danny gave another blink in confusion. Maybe that was just the ectoplasmic residue leeching from his system. That meant he was safe to return to class.

His red convers shoes squeaked back across the hallway and into Mr Faluca's classroom. "I'm better now Mr. Faluca," Danny said as he entered the chemistry classroom.

Faluca gave a weary sigh. As the students continued on their work. Danny went back over to the supply table.

He reached out for his sixth beaker that day.

He had a fist like grasp on it's exterior.

He felt the familiar tingle of activating ectoplasmic residue in his hand.

And heard yet another tinkle and crash on the floor.

Danny sighed in exasperation.

.


	21. 3OOAK Resources

**I apologize if I've seemed to drop the ball on TDP. Things are busy and my family's commandeered my computer as the only one with (very slow) internet access. XD But here's something to get us started on episode three!  
**

* * *

**Resources  
**

A "One of a Kind" fanfiction

by sapphireswimming

June 24, 2012

* * *

.

Tucker was frantic, his fingers pressing where the buttons of his PDA had been just a minute ago. The rest of him was frozen in place as his mind raced.

What to do now? What to do now?

He had had everything under control. He had had the ghost doing pushups and polishing its armor at the touch of a button. The all-powerful touch of a button.

But he didn't have a back up. He didn't have backup tech with him. He didn't have a backup plan. Because he shouldn't have needed one. This shouldn't have gotten out of control.

"Tucker!" Danny shouted, all of the accusation in his voice finally piercing through the harried fog in Tucker's head. This was all his fault. And he knew it. But… but… he still didn't know what to do. And now was not the time.

"Who knew my technology was ghost compatible?" he defended, if only to keep Danny quiet so he could think of a plan.

The spirit within the metal armor smirked at the interplay between the boys. He thought his technology was ghost compatible? Hah. These human beings were even more pitiful and stupid than he thought. No. How could such a miserable whelp have stumbled onto the technological workings of another world?

He didn't know… couldn't know… would never know… that this wasn't the case. That his precious resources were not as futuristic as he thought, but the reverse, in fact, was the case. The humans did not possess ghost-compatible technology.

He, the ghost zone's greatest hunter, thanks to the good graces of his sometime-employer, had human-compatible ghost technology.

.

* * *

**Tucker's line struck me as odd this time around. How _could_ ghost and human technology be randomly compatible? With Skulker's suit and ties to Vlad, I think that there's a different explanation for that one.**


	22. 3OOAK Genius

**This story borrows a bit from Avearia's chapter 18, I guess. Why Maddie never made the connection.  
**

* * *

**Genius  
**

A "One of a Kind" fanfiction

by sapphireswimming

June 26, 2012

* * *

.

Maddie silently moved down the hallway until she reached the sanctuary of her room. Sitting down on the bed, she struck a pensive pose. If she could believe the clues laid out for her… if she could only believe what the woman had said… But everything had happened so quickly today that she hadn't had time yet to process quite everything that had occurred.

The news that the magazine people were coming had just come the day before. Jazz had been bouncing off the walls and even though most mothers would have frozen in the shock that there was going to be an interview in their (unclean!) house in just a few short hours, Maddie took it all in stride. A few passes with the FentonCleaner and all would be set to right in the house… as long as she remembered to let Jazz or Danny handle it instead of Jack. He would get a little too excited about using it.

The rest of the time had been spent in a flurry, trying to figure out what to say and how to handle the camera crew. And then, of course, the lady with the unbelievably poofed hair held out her microphone and Maddie was torn between showing the world just how brilliant she was and supporting whatever came out of her husband's all-too-enthusiastic mouth; pacifying Jazz who felt the need to interrupt every other sentence and then Danny and his friends dashing into the house with nothing but a suspicious explanation of what they had—or had not—been doing.

She'd been distracted too much by their entrance. Danny had been distant lately. Different. And she wondered about that. She worried.

Was it just something boys went through as they grew up? She had never had to deal with anything like this from Jazz. Then again, Jazz had grown up so fast. Was an adult before she was finished being a child. Reading psychology and her old college textbooks while she should have been enjoying Dr. Seuss.

She knew from other parents that they had trouble with their teenagers. But Danny and Jazz had never been a problem. Until now. Why now? His social circles hadn't changed. Was it just high school? Was it the accident? Was it something she was doing? Or not doing?

She hated to think that she was doing something wrong as a mother. For weeks now, she had considered checking up on him more often, offering to help with his homework, and, oh, any number of things. But every time she got close, he skirted away. And every time she asked, he ran.

So she didn't do anything. But she still thought of everything that might be wrong. Of everything that she was supposed to be doing to fix the situation. After his escapade in the zoo, she determined that she would talk with him, at least figure out something about what was happening. See if the accident had shaken him up more than they had originally thought. If he was as fine as he had protested he was and as the test results seemed to indicate, he should have gotten over the shock.

But she put him out of her mind for the moment, getting back to the matters at hand. The magazine. The interview. The rest of her family trying to run things for her.

Until the crashes.

Danny didn't normally draw attention to himself, or make trouble, especially when there were people over. So naturally, it concerned her, but now was not the time to deal with it. Once everyone was gone. Let Danny have his space until then.

The lady was insistent on investigating, though, going up to Danny's room and barging in without knocking, despite the "Danny's Room – Keep Out" clearly pasted on the door. Maddie almost told the woman to mind her own business… but the fact that it _was her_ business kept her from turning the lady away. The reporter was curious, but she was concerned about what happened behind the door. It would be good to see what was behind… to see if he was okay… to see if she had done something horribly wrong…

Before they could see anything other than a destroyed room— why, Danny, why?— he pushed them out. Pushed her away. He had never done that before. Then again, she had never barged in before… never let a stranger barge in before her.

She felt terrible. She deserved to be shut out of his life. But he didn't deserve to shut everyone else out. He should be acting like this. What had she done wrong? How could she fix this? How could she reach out to him? How did she tell him that she understood what he was going through… that she would always be there for him, despite anything that might happen in his life. Despite hardships with school or friends. Anything.

She needed to go back there, go back to him. But not with these people here. Not with strangers watching. Seeing how she had failed. Had let him drift away so far. Not with them butting in with their microphones and their fake makeup, hair, and nails. No, just mother and son.

Failed mother.

Distant son.

These were the thoughts that ran through her head. Until the woman turned to her with a conspiratorial smile.

What? Maddie thought. What was wrong? Did she see it too? Did this woman, who had been in the house for less than an hour, already see so clearly what Maddie had been doing wrong?

"Brooding… messy… reclusive… these are the signs of a true genius!"

Maddie stood stunned on the steps, was unable to process anything else that happened the rest of the afternoon, didn't even remember the photo-shoot or the crew leaving.

Just the implications of the woman's statement. The expert in reading the smartest people across the country had said that her son was a genius. And that the way he had withdrawn himself over the past few weeks wasn't a problem, wasn't the result of something she had done wrong, but was simply the natural outpouring of her son's natural brilliant inclinations. Something to encourage instead of hamper.

And who was she to discredit the woman? Here her son had discovered that the rare gorilla had been labeled the wrong gender, something scientists the world over had failed to note. He always had been smart, had always had that special insight to everything, even when he was small.

So she sat here on the bed now, smiling. She hadn't done anything wrong. Danny's hiding away wasn't a problem. It was a good thing. She shouldn't coddle the boy. He needed to strike out on his own and forge the path on which his intelligence would take him. She would let him stay away in his room as long as he wanted. But that was okay.

It was as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

Her smile grew. She always knew that her son really was one of a kind.

.

* * *

**Oh, I like this 'including the title of the episode' thing. I might do that more often. :D**

**But how was Maddie's thought process? I feel like it got weirdly out of character for her, but my brain isn't letting me process why.  
**


	23. 4AOTKGS Oops

**Mossmask: I'm just saying. I watched the episode and this scene just made me go "Wait a minute. BI"**

* * *

**Oops  
**

A "Attack of the Killer Garage Sale" fanfiction

by theCinderNinja

June 26, 2012

* * *

.

Danny grunted in a mix of pain and frustration as he got smacked in the head with the ghost lightning rod - that's not something that happens every day.

He reeled for a moment in the air before righting himself and glaring boldly across at the offending ghost who'd just barged through the Portal.

"Y'know what? I've already been dumped on once in my own house." He snapped, grabbing for his dad's new Ghost Weasel. "And that's enough for one day!"

It wasn't until after the machine had been switched on that he remembered a very vital piece of information - he was still a ghost.

.

* * *

**The icon contest for the DA group runs until the end of June if anyone still wants in. :)  
**


	24. TDP Jack Drabbles

Jack Drabbles: Because the Big Guy needs more love.

By: Avearia

* * *

Mystery Meat. (100)

.

Jack watched in awe as the ghostly teen soared above his head. Snow white hair, glowing green eyes…

A ghost! Excitement like he'd never felt before bubbled in his chest. A _real_ ghost! He'd searched for 30 years, and now for the first time, he had solid evidence.

The ghost appeared in broad daylight, too. After years of listening to indistinct _mumbles_ and _thud_s in haunted houses, it was startling to hear the ghost's clear voice as it flew overhead, cheery as could be, "Thanks for the thermos!"

Jack paused, shocked. Oh _no… _

…the ghost stole their thermos!

…Little _thief_….

.

* * *

Parental Bonding. (100)

.

Danny held the paper under Jack's nose. "Um… Mr. Lancer…" he began, looking guilty.

Jack knew Danny always had trouble in school. His eyes narrowed. "Mr. Lancer _what? …_Is this _bad news?_"

Danny grinned guiltily and hid the paper behind his back. "Mr. Lancer…" he paused, then smiled.

Then vanished.

Suddenly, Jack found himself standing in front of a balding, overweight, middle-aged man, shaking hands vigorously. "I'm glad you agreed to chaperone the dance. We need more responsible adults like you. Now excuse me, I've got tests to grade. See you Friday."

Lancer left. Jack stared, confused.

"…What just happened?"

.

* * *

One of a Kind. (100)

.

Jazz was ashamed of her father.

Jack was heartbroken.

Over and over, Jazz shouted, scolded, and snubbed them. She'd even scheduled a magazine interview to prove her parents had "Respectable" jobs.

Truth was, Jack once had a respectable job, on his family farm. He'd worked his fingers to the bone, pitching hay, planting seeds, harvesting crops—too busy for hobbies or even friends.

When Jack grew up, he swore he'd be a ghost hunter, because no matter what others said, or how poorly it paid, ghost hunting made him happy.

He'd kept that promise.

Why wasn't Jazz proud of that?

.

* * *

Attack of the Killer Garage Sale: (100)

.

Maddie threatens to throw out everything if he doesn't clean the shed.

Jack's devastated. How could she say that? Each object is a treasure, a memory.

He goes over the inventory in his head. The old computers his dad gave him, the only interest his old man ever showed in Jack's education. His first screwdriver, earned at age 7, which started his love for fixing things. The old remote, his first successful attempt at disassembling and reassembling new technology.

The old proto-portal, marking that fateful day in college.

_Vlad…_

Jack wonders if Vlad is still angry after all these years…

.

* * *

Preshow: (200)

.

"…Designed to view a world unseen!" Jack announced, motioning to the completed contraption behind him. "I give you… the Fenton Portal!"

His children just stared. "Looks like another hunk of junk to me," Jazz said flatly.

"That's because it isn't plugged in yet," Maddie said, handing Jack the extension cord.

The moment of truth. "Brace yourselves," he said, smiling at Maddie. She smiled back. Excitement growing, eyes on the portal, Jack plugged in their greatest invention.

It sparked.

Nothing happened.

Jazz glowered. "…Brace ourselves for _what?" _She muttered to herself.

Jack and Maddie's hearts broke. This couldn't be—they'd spent a lifetime perfecting this technology to find the Ghost Zone….

Yet it didn't work 20 years ago, and it didn't work now.

Everyone began to walk away, but Jack frowned and walked inside, eyes inspecting the walls. Was there a loose wire, or an incomplete circuit…? He refused to give up so easily.

That's when he saw it.

"Hey Mads! I think I see the problem! The switch we put in here was in the off position!" he said excitedly. Without thinking, he reached forward and pressed the 'on' button.

_There was a great big flash and things just changed… _

_.  
_


	25. 4AOTKGS Bumps and Bruises

_A Jazz oneshot, inspired by the quote during "Attack of the Killer Garage Sale" :_

_**Dash**: "I might've had to invite you, but if you embarrass me, your sister will be doing her thesis on your bruises!"_

_Just a friendly reminder, Jazz doesn't know about Danny's powers yet. And oh, what fun that little fact brings… *evil laughter*_

.

* * *

.

**Bumps and Bruises**

An "Attack of the Killer Garage Sale" fanfiction

By Avearia

.

* * *

.

Jazz Fenton was very protective of her baby brother.

Maybe her parents failed to notice, but _she _didn't. Ever since Danny started high school, he'd been accumulating some suspicious bruises.

Just small ones at first—tiny scrapes and bumps that could easily be explained away by his excessive clumsiness, which had increased since his near-death experience with the Fenton Portal. Jazz could not _count _the number of times she'd seen her brother fall out of his chair, or walk into a wall, or somehow trip while standing still.

But then one day he came home with a black eye. When Jazz asked what happened, he lied—he was a terrible liar—saying he'd simply fallen down. That was always the lie he used.

Jazz found out the truth not long after. She'd swung by the freshman hallway and saw Danny getting shoved into his locker, by none other than Casper High's star quarterback, Dash Baxter.

Bullying. Jazz wasn't new to the concept—several girls, students and adults alike, had picked on her while she grew up, thanks to her parentage. Her parents had told her to be strong and ignore their spiteful comments. She'd never had a problem with physical bullying, but she knew well enough that if she stepped in, the bullying might just get worse, not better.

She tried anyway, subtly. Jazz told her parents about the bullying, and the teachers. She talked to the school counselor, who assured her that a little roughness was _typical _for boys Danny's age. Finally—and Jazz was rather proud of this tactic—she'd tricked Dash into inviting Danny to one of his famous mega-parties. She thought, if Dash could just be civil with Danny for a week, interact and get to know him, then maybe Dash would see his 'favorite punching bag' was actually very friendly and likable.

Danny never once complained about Dash, or any of the other jocks. In fact, the week he'd been invited to Dash's party, Danny seemed _eager _whenever Dash was around. Maybe the counselor was right—maybe it _was _just a guy thing.

Either way, she'd done her part. Danny was a strong person, who always rebounded quickly, even after a_ near death experience._ If he needed help, he would ask for it. Until then, she would just help tutor him through school, keep him away from their crazy parents' inventions, and always be willing to listen to his problems. To be honest, she thought Danny had everything under control.

She couldn't have been more wrong.

.

* * *

.

It wasn't quite dark, but a half moon rose high over her house. Jazz shuffled up her walkway, yawning as she went. She'd just put in overtime volunteer work at the hospital, and she was beat. Time to go inside, finish her homework, and then go to bed early.

When she reached her front door, she spied a bright yellow sticky note taped there. Jazz peeled it off, squinting at the message. _"Gone ghost hunting! See you Friday."_ Her mother's handwriting scrawled across the paper.

Jazz scowled. Great, another of her parents' last-minute ghost hunting escapades. She wondered which haunted house they were investigating this time. Why did her parents do this without warning her first? There wasn't even an emergency contact number on the note. And Jazz _knew _her mother never carried a cell phone.

Jazz sighed in frustration. Now she'd have to clean up whatever ramshackle state her parents had left the house in, and order pizza for dinner. Danny was probably starving by now…

Annoyed, she twisted the doorknob hard and found it unlocked. How irresponsible—what if a burglar had snuck in? Jazz added that to her growing list of things to scold her parents for when they got back. "Danny?" she called, hanging her purse and keys on the pegs by the door.

There was a moan behind her, and Jazz jumped, suddenly wondering if someone _had _broken in to her house. Startled, Jazz spun to find Danny sprawled out on the nearby couch, eyes closed.

Jazz put a hand to her racing heart. "Geez, Danny, don't scare me like that!" she said, coming closer. He didn't respond. "What are you doing down here anyway, Danny? You're never—"

The words died in her throat when she got a good look at him.

Danny's arms were wrapped in bandages, blood seeping through in some places. One arm was wrapped wrist to elbow, while the other started mid-forearm and disappeared up under his shirt sleeves. His face and neck were mottled with bruises, and there was a rough cut on his cheek that he'd neglected to bandage. His knuckles were heavily bruised as well, and two fingers on his right hand were done up in splints.

Assorted medical equipment, no doubt stolen from Jazz's room, lay strewn around him on the floor. He hadn't cleaned up. It looked like he'd just barely bandaged himself up, then fell asleep on the couch.

Suddenly, Jazz couldn't breathe.

As quickly as possible, Jazz pushed the iodine bottles and half-used rolls of bandages away, kneeling beside her brother. She tapped his shoulder lightly, afraid she might hurt him further.

"Danny? Danny are you ok?" she asked with a voice that shook.

His eyes seemed to flicker a little bit beneath his eyelids. "m'fine, Jazz," he mumbled, still asleep.

Jazz pursed her lips. She volunteered in a hospital—those wounds looked _bad._ "How did this happen? Danny, you should've called me… you should've called the _hospital…_"

Sleepily, Danny shooed her off with his good hand. "m_'fine,_" he muttered again. "Jus'… tired. Ah." He flinched and touched his hand to his chest.

Hands shaking, Jazz reached forward and lifted up the end of Danny's shirt. She peeked and saw a layer of bandages there, too, patched at his side. She gently covered it again. "Danny, what happened?" she pressed.

"Mmmm… I… fell," he said, hesitating a bit.

Jazz's skin turned stone-cold.

That was a flat-out _lie. _Jazz had heard it a hundred times before. He always used that lie whenever he was in a fight, or—

_In a fight? _Jazz paused, frowning. With care, she leaned inward to get a closer look at the bruises around Danny's face and neck.

Turning just slightly, Jazz just barely spied a large bruise wrapping around her brother's neck. She reached her hand out to hover over the bruise, like she was going to grab him there.

The bruise matched up perfectly with the shape of her hand. Jazz could easily see where his attacker's palm, thumb, and fingers had rested across Danny's pale skin.

Jazz snatched her hand away, feeling a chill go down her spine. "Danny, you've got a bruise…" she began.

He seemed to wake up a bit at that. "'s fine, Jazz," he drawled, "Jus'… bullies. 's… _nothin'._"

Jazz swallowed hard. She didn't know what to say to that.

She didn't need to say anything, she realized. Right now, she needed to call the hospital. He could have internal injuries, or a concussion… he needed medical attention right away!

Shakily, Jazz stood, eyes glued to her brother. "Okay, Danny, just… just stay here, I'm going to make a call, ok? Just relax, and… don't move too much."

He muttered something under his breath, and Jazz could tell he was already asleep. Slowly, she edged towards the kitchen, keeping her eyes on her brother as she moved away.

Once the kitchen door swung shut behind her, Jazz's knees gave way, and she collapsed on the linoleum.

Danny hurt sometimes, but she'd never seen him so battered. Someone _definitely _attacked him… but who? And why would he refer to those severe injuries as 'nothing'? No, he had to be protecting someone…

A picture of Dash flashed in Jazz's head, and she froze. _Bullies. _That's all Danny had said, but it was enough. She had a theory, and she didn't like it. Only _one _bully really picked on Danny.

Jazz's hands curled into fists. _Dash. _He'd gone too far this time. She'd thought Dash's bullying was just simple rough-housing, but if he was capable of _this… _

She set her jaw in a stubborn line and stood, marching right over to the phone. She had a brother to protect, and she had to start acting like the responsible adult she was. She knew just what she had to do.

The phone rang in her ears before the other line picked up.

"_Hello, 911, please state your emergency." _A cool voice said in her ear.

Jazz took a deep breath, ordering her thoughts. "Hi, yes, this is Jasmine Fenton. I'm calling from my house. My brother was just attacked by a local bully. He already put bandages on the wounds, but I think he still needs medical attention. Can you send an ambulance?"

"_Of course, miss. Please stay on the line," _said the 911 operator.

Jazz's eyes flickered over to the closed kitchen door, and she imagined her brother on the other side of it, lying in agony on the couch. She took another deep breath.

"Also," said Jazz, "Can you send the police over? I'd like to press assault charges."

"_Of course miss. They should be at your house in a few minutes." _

Jazz smiled triumphantly. No one was going to hurt her baby brother ever again.

She'd make sure of that.

..


	26. 4AOTKGS Project

Well, you can never have too much Jazz. X3

* * *

**Project**

An "Attack of the Killer Garage Sale" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

Some people turned to substance abuse, like drinking or drugs, when everything became too crazy in their lives. Others pursued mindless tasks that they could perform again and again, never changing, so that there would be something concrete they could hold on to. There were still more who preferred channels through which they could pour out their feelings and opinions and passions and frustrations. Some poured their souls out in music, pounding on the piano or swaying along with their expressive sounds.

Jazz was not one of those people. She had no musical talent and was far above those mindless men to stoop to anything that ordinary to cleanse her system of franticness. But she did need something, after all of the weirdness that seemed to be accumulating in her life and in Amity Park.

So she wrote.

Of course, she analyzed every single sentence of what she put down in her notebook until she wasn't even sure what she had been thinking at the time. Truth journaling helped some to clear up the confusion of what she had been feeling and what she later felt she should have been feeling.

That kind of writing didn't do anything to change the jumble in her head, either, so she soon looked for another way to get it out. It started as factual recordings of what she knew occurred, what odd events happened in her city, what people said were ghosts popping up all over the place, but the simple task soon became a larger project. Putting these events into perspective.

She began by writing what probably happened. An elaborate prank. A misunderstanding. A hoax building on the growing reputation that Amity Park had for "being haunted."

But that was boring. And she already knew it was the case before she started. It did nothing to persuade her even more of her viewpoint. In fact, it made the logical, factual side of events seem boring, mundane, and increasingly unconvincing against the tide of spectral conspiracy theorists.

So eventually she turned to the other side. Writing what the common emotional citizens thought was happening. As fantastically as she could imagine it in her head. Ghosts and all. She needed to make it so overboard that no one would possibly believe that it was really happening. To convince her and her classmates once and for all that it could not be real.

In order to complete her project, she contacted a publisher of sensationalist thrillers. Knowing that he would take one look at the ridiculous things she had put down and chuck it over his shoulder, claiming that it was too much for even him.

The results of this final step did not quite go according to her calculations, however, and Jazz stumbled out of the publisher unable to comprehend how she had become the soon-to-be-published-author of just what the man (who also happened to be on the newly formed supernatural tourism committee) had been looking for: "The Attack of the Killer Garage Sale."

.

* * *

**Episode 5: Splitting Images tonight at 7pm 12am EST. Livestream / pieinthesky**

**The DA group icon contest ends tomorrow too. So get your creativity going! :D**


	27. 4AOTKGS Practice

**The cup of water disappeared… *poof***

* * *

**Practice**

An "Attack of the Killer Garage Sale" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

It was probably the last thing he was expecting to see. Okay, maybe not the last thing he was expecting (growing up in his family and getting these whacky ghost powers did put a different spin on things) but he was definitely not expecting to see Dash at his kitchen table, making sweet eyes at his sister.

He had covered up his shocked disgust very quickly, to give him credit. But what was supposed to be a smooth turning of the atmosphere ended up triggering his intangibility (would he never get the hang of this?) and sending his arm straight through the table.

After upsetting all of the books and papers on top of Dash, he made a break for it. It wasn't likely that the jock would pound on him in his own house, but still, better safe than sorry when around the guy who thinks he owns everything he touches.

It wasn't until he had paused on the lab steps to calm himself that he realized he didn't know what happened to the glass of water he'd been holding. There had been no crash, no glass splinters, no spilt water. No nothing. That he remembered. He tiptoed up the stairs to see the floor completely empty. No evidence that he had ever been holding a glass. And Jazz and Dash didn't look like they'd moved at all, which eliminated the possibility that either of them had picked it up.

But he didn't feel brave enough to venture back upstairs and look for it. Or ask about it.

So it looked like this would remain one of life's mysteries.

Although… it would be a really good way to practice his intangibility once he got the hang of it a little more…

.

* * *

**Voting is open for the DeviantArt group icon contest.  
**

**It would also be nice if there were some other chapters to post... *hinthint*  
**


	28. 5SI Happlily Leaping Through Meadows

**I had a dream about Sydney Poindexter frolicking through a meadow while I barbecued a tree with a mermaid. TOO MUCH SUGAR. And the title is pointless, I know. It's a short 100 word drabble, though, so no one cares...right?**

* * *

**Happily Leaping Through Meadows With Ghosts**

A "Splitting Images" fanfiction

By Phantom-Lightning

* * *

.

"I can't believe I actually have a body!" Sydney Poindexter said, laughing happily (although in reality it was a loud nasal guffaw). "I can do all those things I used to do when I was still alive, like prance in flower filled meadows and dance in the rain! This is such a delight~!"

He then proceeded to run out of the building and do just that, although he has disappointed when it didn't rain.

When Danny finally got his body back, he wondered why everyone thought he was either crazy or a stereotypical young 6 year old girl in disguise.

.

* * *

**Also check out Phantom-Lightning's drabble collection _Homework_ for more 100 word drabbles based on episodes. :)  
**


	29. 5SI Sorry

**Here's something we never heard about again...  
**

* * *

**Sorry**

A "Splitting Images" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

Sam stormed across the room, her dark gloomy exterior made even more gothly, if that was possible, by whatever had her simmering (someone almost said boiling, due to the color of the girl's face, but as soon as they found themselves staring at it up close and personal, retracted the statement).

She didn't stop for anyone or anything. Even the teachers realized that they would have a problem diverting this force of nature, so they let her take her course, hoping that everyone would make it through more or less intact.

Everyone stayed out of her way as best they could. Those unfortunate enough to be caught in the tailwind of her hurricane through the school hallways were thrown to the floor or shoved roughly to the lockers.

There was one poor soul who couldn't avoid her, though. He certainly tried, as he had done fervently since second grade, but today there was no escaping her.

The lanky redhead Ricky Marsh found himself cornered by Sam Manson and he tried cowering, although his height meant that he was still taller than the girl who stood in front of him with spastically clenching fists.

"I'm sorry," Sam ground out from between clenched teeth.

He took his arms down from in front of his face, wondering if he had heard correctly. "Wha-?"

"I'm sorry." She repeated. "For pushing you off the monkey bars in second grade."

.

* * *

**Tonight is episode 7: Bitter Reunions. Livestream /pieinthesky at 7pm and 12am EST. See you there!  
**


	30. 7BR Hospitality

**Number seven happens to be one of the best episodes, don'cha know? :D  
**

* * *

**Hospitality (100)  
**

A "Bitter Reunions" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

Vlad looked the portrait. "Ah yes, Jack, just think! The ghost of the Dairy King could, for all you know, roam the very halls of this castle!"

Jack's face lit up and he bounced like a puppy.

Vlad smirked.

There was no way Jack was walking away from his hospitality now. No matter how hard Maddie—his beautiful Maddie—might object to staying, she couldn't talk him out of anything. She hadn't been able to in college, and from the looks of things, it had only gotten worse over the years.

Too bad the Dairy King's ghost didn't actually exist...

.

* * *

**So... we don't have any fics for last episode yet because I haven't had time to write anything down and I seem to be the only one actively submitting things every week. No one needs to write for every episode, but it would be nice if you wrote for one or two (like you've seen, they can be short as 100 words!) so that we have some more. Because I'm pretty sure you don't want to just see my stuff _ad nauseum_. XD **

**I completely understand that you're busy, but we were off to such an amazing start with the first episode, that I don't want to see this fall by the wayside when it seems that so many people are interested. Please let me know if you have an idea for getting things jumpstarted again. (ie- would starting a forum help?)  
**


	31. 7BR Danny Wins

**Danny Wins  
**

A "Bitter Reunions" fanfiction

By Fluehatraya

July 14, 2012

* * *

.

It was another Fenton Family Meal, and of course, it wouldn't be complete without Vlad when he was in the area. Vlad hadn't been too pleased about attending, even if it did give him the chance to see his beloved Maddie, taunt the boy he would have as his son, and throw thinly-veiled insults at the oaf Jack. Not to mention planting more bugs to spy on the household.

Dinner had been a tense affair, silence lacking only in Jack's babbling with the occasional, condescending input from Vlad. Now, as followed every Fenton Family Meal, family time (plus Vlad) was in effect. However, Maddie was cleaning up the kitchen to give her an excuse to avoid Vlad, and Jazz had followed suit. Vlad, no longer able to put up with his "best friend", had meanwhile gotten him to retreat into the lab and look for a button (that didn't exist) from his jacket.

So now Vlad and Danny were alone, sitting next to each other on the couch in the living room. Vlad was every inch the pompous git that he was, relaxed like an emperor as he sprawled his legs out languidly up onto the coffee table in front of them, while Danny was tense and kept shooting him suspicious looks. Although it had amused Vlad at first, after several minutes of this Vlad finally decided to put the boy's anxiety at ease.

"You know, with your family here like this, I'm not going to suddenly attack you, dear boy. Surely even you are not so daft as to realize this?" Vlad inquired with a quirked eyebrow, emphasizing his point by jerking his head in the direction of the kitchen, where the two women of the house still were.

Danny glared at him in response, eyes brightening in irritation, before they suddenly dimmed as a look of epiphany replaced his former surly visage.

"You're a pretty bad judge of character, you know that?" he said suddenly.

"Oh?" was Vlad's only prompt for him to continue.

"Well, when we first met in our ghost forms, the first thing you told me was that I was a bright boy. Now you're insinuating – wow, big vocab word, Mr. Lancer would be proud of me – that I'm daft. So which is it?"

"I –"

Vlad never got to continue, because at that moment heavy stomps were quickly succeeded by Jack's entrance into the room, brandishing a black lump of something that had hair and dust stuck to it.

"I found your button, Vladdie!"

Before Vlad could even deny that it wasn't his, Jack dropped the crud into one of Vlad's hands, before staring at a stain on his glove where he had held the thing.

"Err, you may want to get that washed."

Then he walked off to get a spare glove, leaving Vlad with something that smelled, looked, felt, and presumably tasted and even sounded (if it could make a sound) foul still in one of his bare hands. Danny snickered at the stricken look on the billionaire's face before getting up and leaving before Vlad could get him back. Score one for Danny.

.


	32. 7BR A Single Voice

**A Single Voice  
**

A "Bitter Reunions" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

With the flick of his wrist Vlad Plasmius tossed the limp, smoking body of that pesky ghost boy through the closed door and out into the hallway. How dare that goody-two-shoes idiot follow his prey from Amity Park? What, were the Fentons haunted and just too stupid to realize it? He wouldn't put it past Jack but surely Maddie would be at least that observant.

Hmmph. Although she was unobservant enough to turn down the better man, wasn't she?

Vlad gave a tired smirk into the darkness. No matter. Tomorrow all his long months of planning would bear fruit and finally he would have the lovely Maddie at his side, a rare songbird in a world of hounds. He phased through the door to finish off this pesky little...

He stopped dead in his tracks as he saw a white ring flash around the ghost boy's waist.

_Oh my god..._

Vlad watched in amazement as those rings swept up and down the boy's battered frame, replacing the black hazmat suit and white gloves with flannel pajamas and bare feet. White hair turned black, framing soft features not yet ravaged by puberty. He was...

"The ghost boy is Jack's son?" he demanded.

There was no answer from the silent hallway. Instead he found his mind allowing itself to feel something he'd lost twenty years ago. Something he'd long ago given up hope of ever feeling again.

_I... I'm not alone..._

Plasmius gave over to Masters as he shifted forms. "Well, what do you know..." he said. Wonder, joy, hysterical laughter all warred in his voice under a veneer of ironic amusement. He scooped the boy up into his arms and held him bridal-style. He couldn't stop himself from laying his head on the boy's skinny chest. Glee rushed through him as he heard the steady thump of a heartbeat, the slow rush of air into and out of lungs, the almost imperceptible rushing hum of a ghostly core.

Vlad changed back to Plasmius, the better to fly without waking such a precious creature. He flew off to his bedroom, barely perceptible laughter giving him a demented grin.

He was about to lay Daniel onto silk and satin before he remembered where the boy was supposed to be sleeping. "Right," he said to no one before swooping off again to a sparsely furnished little guest room. As soon as his plans succeeded he was definitely going to be giving the boy better quarters. He deserved better. Young Daniel deserved everything Vlad himself was never able to have in his first years as a hybrid: security, safety, luxury, and of course the guidance he'd need to learn to control himself and his powers without putting lives, sanity, and secrecy in danger. Vlad could give Daniel that. He would keep the boy, yes, keep him.

Keep him so neither of them would ever have to be alone. Yes, never alone again...

The demented grin was back as Vlad burst into the boy's empty room. He tore the covers back and set Daniel on the bed, arranging him into a comfortable position. He laid his head down on the boy's chest once again to listen to that wonderful miracle, that human heart beating in harmony with a ghostly core. He kissed the boy's forehead and pulled the sheets over him as though he slept on the coroner's slab.

"Good night, little badger," Vlad whispered. And yet he couldn't turn away and leave. This was still so new, so total, such a completely new development that he couldn't turn away. What if this was another dream? What if it wasn't real? What if he was too hard disciplining the boy and he died?

Plasmius turned back to Masters. Vlad had the feeling that his ghost half was unwilling to put up with such idiotic questioning. Fate had brought the boy here. That's all there was to it. Fate herself had given this beautiful jewel to him, this precious hybrid, this sole voice in a world of tweeting birds and barking dogs. He would not let it get away.

"I will keep you," he whispered.

"No..." came the moan from under the covers.

At first Vlad bristled. _How **dare** he refuse..._ Then he realized the boy might just be dreaming. The figure under the covers started thrashing. A nightmare then. Vlad stepped back into the doorway but still couldn't bring himself to leave.

"No... No, no... No! Get away!" Danny screamed himself awake and tore the covers off of him. He looked around the room, expecting to still find himself at the mercy of that terrifyingly powerful ghost with the hateful red eyes...

_How?_ "Huh? Where am I? What happened?" _How did I get back here?_

Vlad took a deep breath and stepped out from underneath the doorway. "I was going to ask you the same question, young man," he said. He allowed himself to approach to the foot of the bed, knowing that if he got any closer he'd have to listen to the boy's chest again and wouldn't that be awkward to explain.

_That was some dream..._ Danny searched his mind for some sort of excuse, something to explain away the screaming. "I..." _Think, man, think!_ "...must have been worn out from the long car trip." _That'll work. Please fall for it..._ "I-I'll be okay in the morning. I'm sorry for the scare."

Vlad couldn't help but smile at the excuse the boy came up with. _Such potential..._ "Oh what's a little scare between friends, son, hmm? Sleep tight, little badger." He dragged himself out of the room as Daniel gave a nervous little smile and curled up to go back to sleep.

The door closed softly behind him. "Yes, sleep tight," he purred to the darkness.

Let Daniel sleep. Vlad would not see his bed again tonight. The reunion was tomorrow and he needed to revise his plans. He would keep the boy for his very own. He would make sure that Daniel never had to face the world knowing he was utterly alone.

Daniel would never know what it was like to be a single voice among the tittering of birds and the baying of hounds. Vlad would make sure of it.

.


	33. 2PB Rat Race

**Rat Race  
**

A "Parental Bonding" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Valerie sighed as she felt her Dad's hand on her shoulder. She half turned to look up at him reading the sympathy in his eyes. That, and the perennial fear of not being adequate for the task. Valerie could almost hear her father thinking 'I wish Evelyn were here. She'd know what to say.' Valerie sighed. They both missed her.

"Still not here?"

She shook her head.

"Do you think something happened to him?"

She shrugged not raising her eyes from her lap. "I called Mrs. Foley. She said he left with that Fenton kid over an hour ago."

"I thought you were going with Kwan." her father said.

"Donna said she'd go with him so he dropped me like a hot potato. So then I was going to go with Tucker."

"Who's Tucker?" Mr. Gray asked. He tried to keep track of his daughter's friends but this boy's name didn't sound familiar.

"Oh just some nerd. But I didn't have a date and I sort of felt sorry for him so I agreed."

"Being a 'nerd' is not necessarily a bad thing." said her father.

"It is as far as my social standing is. But not as bad as not having a date at all."

"What about me?" he asked, placing his hand on his chest in mock hurt."

Valerie lips twitched into a smile. "Not you, Daddy. Adult nerds are okay, especially when they bring in high salaries. It's in high school that it makes you a social pariah."

"Well, maybe he just needs a chance to grow up a bit." her Dad offered.

"You can say that again." She said a bit bitterly. She tried to give her father a wry smile but couldn't muster the humor. "I called Star. She said Tucker showed up with Sam Manson an hour ago. Then she went on about some sort of crazy ghost attack and giant dragons."

"A ghost attack? At the school?"

"Apparently. According to star, who sounded fairly hysterical by the way, there were at least two ghost involved. This black and white one and a giant dragon dragon ghost."

"Well speaking as you father, I'm actually rather relived that you're not there. Sounds as if it was a good thing that you were safely away from there." He paused. "Was anybody hurt?"

"No, I don't think so, It was hard to get anything out of Star, every other word she said was OMG. But I think everyone was okay."

"But what happened?"

"I don't know. Star said that Paulina insisted on leaving so she had to leave and take her home because Paulina didn't have a date anymore."

"Huh?"

"She dumped Fenton."

"Is he related to the Fentons that have that big thing on that place on Canterbury Place? The ghost-hunters?"

"Yeah apparently they were there too. Anyway Danny Fenton is Tucker's best friend. But you don't have to feel sorry for him. Apparently Sam dumped Tucker and is dancing with him."

"But the important thing is no one got hurt."

"Except for me being stood up." Valerie groused.

He put his arm around his daughter's shoulders. "His loss." After a moment of silence he went on. "Speaking of ghosts, I have to go to Axion Labs. I'm in charge of overseeing the instillation of the new security system. The new boss also wanted that to include ghost security. Do you want to come with me?" he offered.

"Well it beats just sitting around here brooding on how I got dumped twice for the same dance." She said. "Give me a minute to change out of these clothes."

"That's my girl. You look beautiful, by the way."

.

* * *

.

Valerie waited while her father used his pass card to unlock the door and gain access to the lab. It unlocked with a click and he opened it and bowed her in. "I have to go to my office for a bit, but why don't you have a look around."

"Ok, Daddy." There was always something interesting going on at Axiom Labs.

"Just don't touch anything. Some of the scientists are working on sensitive stuff."

She wandered through the building finding looking at various projects. When it came to security, her of the scientist were pretty naive leaving their work just lying around. They might be brilliant in their field but they should at least lock their work up. Then again most of it was so way over her head it might as well have been encrypted.

Valerie's phone rang. She picked up expecting it to be Star but it was Tucker's voice.

"Hey…Valerie…?"

"What do you want?" she snapped back.

"I want to say I'm sorry. Really, really sorry." Tucker's voice sounded agonized.

"I bet." She sneered.

"Valerie…I was on my way to pick you up and then….Danny said he needed me because there was going to be this ghost attack at the dance. And then….uh…this ghost takes me over and the next thing I know I was…..at S..uh…somewhere else…"

"And you expect me to believe that?" she demanded.

There was an indistinct mutter.

"What was that?" Valerie asked.

"D…uh… the ghost really owes me big time for this." He growled. "Valerie there really was a ghost at school."

"Tell me about it what happened?"

"Well there was this evil haunted necklace that could turn people into this big blue fire breathing ghost dragon."

"Star told me that Paulina saw this black ghost with white hair. She didn't say anything about a giant dragon." The accusatory tone was back.

"Well that ghost was there too." he said.

"Is that the one who took you over?" she asked.

Tucker watched Danny and Sam slowly revolve on the dance floor. Soppy grins plastered their faces. He didn't feel inclined, just at the moment to be the fall guy.

"…yeah." He admitted. "It was trying to get the haunted necklace back."

There was a pause while Valerie thought it over. "I believe you. But it's only because I've already talked to Star and she confirmed that some giant blue ghost smashed up the girl's bathroom and flew out onto the football field. "

"I does sound kind of unbelievable, I guess." confessed Tucker. "But I really was probably better that you weren't here. Thing got kind of hairy for a bit."

"So a ghost can really take somebody over and make them do things?" Valerie asked.

"Yes."

"That's really wrong."

Tucker was enjoying the sympathy. "Can't agree more." said Tucker a bit hypocritically. "Does this mean that you'll give me another chance for a date?"

"I'll need to think it over."

"It really wasn't my fault." He begged.

"I'll let you know." She said and hung up.

.

* * *

.

Sticking the phone back into her pocket she continued her self guided tour thought Axiom Labs. Just because Tucker had a possibly valid excuse it didn't mean she had to let him off the hook.

She thought about ghosts being able to take someone over and shuddered.

A sound caught her attention and she made her way down the hall. This was the lab where live animals were kept. The light was on and a young woman was moving about the room. At Valerie's greeting she startled and gasped.

"Oh, I didn't see you there. Who are you?"

"I'm Valerie Gray. My father is installing the new security system. Is it okay if I look around?"

"Oh sure, just don't touch anything."

"If I may ask, what's your job?"

"Oh, I'm Susan Perkins. I'm a research assistant intern. Which means among other duties, I get to clean out the cages."

Valerie watched while she pulled out the tray under a cage of mice and dump the soiled bedding into a large trash can. While she put down fresh pine shavings and slid the tray back into place Valerie looked around the place.

"There's a lot of cages." she observed.

"Well, this isn't the worst of it. I'm actually rather glad your Dad's installing a new security system. I somehow also got stuck with cleaning out the dog pens as well."

"Dogs?"

"Yes, the lab keeps a kennel of security dogs to parole the perimeter. Once the new security system is up and running, they won't need to dogs anymore and I can get back to what I'm supposed to be doing."

"What are you supposed to be doing?" Valerie asked.

"I don't mean to complain but I thought I was going to be able to get a chance to do some real research or at least learn about it. I was hoping to be able to put more on my resume at the end of this than "scoops poop". The young woman laughed at the way Valerie wrinkled her nose.

She had a nice laugh. I kind of made up for her plain appearance.

"If it's so bad why don't you just quit?" Valerie asked.

"Don't get me wrong. I'm really lucky to get this paid internship. I just was hoping to get some more out of it. That's why I'm here cleaning cages at"…she paused and glanced at the clock. "A quarter to ten at night. Not only do the cages get cleaned at a time when it won't get in the other scientists' way but I'm hoping that if I get the cages cleaned after hours, then I'll be assigned to do something more interesting."

Valerie moved closer and observed a cage full of white lab rats. She tapped on the glass to get their attention. "What's so interesting about these rats?" she asked.

"Don't touch!" Susan called out sounding alarmed, then seeing which cage Valerie was in front of, she relaxed. "It's alright. That one's okay. Just don't disturb the rats in the cage next to it."

"What's wrong with those rats?" she asked a bit alarmed.

"It's part of an experiment on social development. The adolescent rats in that cage are being tested for response to social conditions. So we need to carefully control any social interactions, even ones from the outside."

"In what way?" Valerie asked. She looked at the rats. They didn't look as large as the ones in the first cage but they were well past rat babyhood. They didn't seem to be doing anything particularly interesting. Most were sleeping.

"Rats are actually social animals. Previous experiments show that the most socially savvy rats get the best resources; nesting areas, food water, the most allies, and fitter mates. These relationships seem to develop during adolescence." *

"So what's going to happen to the rats in that cage?" Valerie asked.

"Nothing horrible. We just did a brain scan." She reassured the girl. "We compared the socially adept rats to ones that experience peer exclusion."

"What did you did you find?" Valerie asked, curious in spite of herself.

"Well, the studies suggest that their brains react to peer exclusion in much the same way they respond to threats to physical health or food supply. Almost as if at neural level, it's perceived as a threat to existence." Ms. Perkins explained. *

Valerie watched the white lab rats in silence while Susan resumed cleaning the cages.

To break the silence, the intern asked. "I know your Dad works here but what are you doing here anyway?"

"Just being one of your lab rats, I suppose."

"What?"

"Just tonight I'm sort of in the "peer exclusion" category." Valerie's fists clenched and she added, "These rope-tailed rodents have it right. I'm not going to forgive the ghost that stole my date tonight anytime soon."

.

* * *

Author's Note:

The research the intern talks about was quoted from the following National Geographic article.

*Dobbs, David, "Beautiful Teanage Brains" National Geographic October 2011 Vol. 220 No. 4 pg. 55


	34. 6WYW Call Me Crazy, But

**Call Me Crazy, But… **

A "What You Want" Fanfiction

_By Avearia_

* * *

_._

Lance Thunder was not having a good day.

"Yes. Well, Mr. Thunder, could you tell me what happened here?" the cop said. Lance shot him a glare, and the cop smiled encouragingly. "One more time."

Lance took a deep breath and counted backwards from ten. He was already in enough trouble, and he didn't need to add "strangling a police officer" to the list. Once his temper was relatively under control, he spoke as calmly and clearly as possible. "Like I _told you last time," _he began, knowing he sounded a bit crazy, "I was sitting in a traffic jam."

"Right…"

"It was around noon. Not long ago. I was right _there, _a block away from the movie theatre, trying to drive to work." Lance continued.

"Okay…"

"And all of the sudden, this car in front of me—one of those red classic Volkswagens, with a surfing board strapped on top—it just backed right into me and dented my front bumper," Lance explained.

"Alright…"

"And then the car's whole body shook, the wheels did something weird, and it just shot _straight up into the air…_"

"Okay, right there. That's where you lost me last time." The cop said, and Lance gave an exasperated sigh as the cop flipped a page in his notes. "Now, when you say 'straight up' and 'into the air', do you mean…"

"I mean it flew! Straight up! Vertical! Star-bound! _Fwoooooosh!" _Lance waved his arms erratically. Normally he wouldn't be quite so undignified, but he was both nearing the end of his patience _and _questioning his own sanity. It was not a good combination. "Just took off E.T. style, and left me with five hundred dollars of damage to my car!"

"Uhuh."

"I'm serious!"

"That's what worries me."

Lance Thunder growled and pressed his hands to his face in frustration. He knew how stupid he sounded. How _crazy _he sounded. But he wasn't a stupid, or crazy, man. At least, not stupid enough to change his story just to appease a cop. They'd been talking here for over an hour, and if Lance suddenly started singing a different tune, the cop would probably fine him for obstruction of justice. Besides, _someone _had to pay for this fender-bender.

"I got the license plate and _everything,_" Lance told the cop, who was now jotting notes down on his notepad. "Can't you do _something? _My insurance is going to go through the roof!"

The cop paused, tapping his chin with the tip of his pen. "Well, Mr. Thunder," he said at last, "…I'm not entirely sure how to file a hit and _fly_."

"Oh for—" Lance threw his hands up into the air. "I _cannot _be the only person who saw it!"

"Sir…" said the cop.

"The car was _bright red! _It took off during _rush hour! _The driver was _screaming as his car flew towards the business sector!" _

"_Sir_," said the cop, again.

"I mean, are people that _blind? _Aren't there security cameras anywhere? What if it's dangerous? It might've been a new, high-tech experiment, or—or an extraterrestrial aircraft, or—or a car possessed by _ghosts_, or—"

"_Sir!" _

Lance stopped, suddenly very aware of the rant he'd just finished. Exactly who would be driving something like that? Mad scientists? Aliens? _Ghosts? _Sheesh. Maybe he _was _crazy. Maybe he should just shut up now before he made things worse.

The cop sighed, a disapproving frown creasing his face. "Sir, I'm going to have to confiscate your driver's license."

"_What?" _Scratch that, things already got worse.

"I'll call a tow truck to pick up your car."

"_What?" _No! That was going to cost extra!

"And if you need a lift, I'll call a taxi for you."

"_What?" _Oh god, he was going to be late for work.

"I just don't think you should be driving in your… condition." The cop said tactfully.

"_Condition?" _That was really the last straw. "I'm not _drunk! Or high! Or crazy!" _

"I didn't say you were. And I won't ask you to come down to the station for drug testing either. Though it would help your case." The cop muttered the last bit under his breath before going on. "It's just that people who suffer from hallucinations should not be on the road. I recommend seeing your doctor as soon as possible."

"But—But—" Lance sputtered, looking at his car parked on the road. He wanted to make some argument, _some _grab at his sanity…

The cop simply held out his hand. "License." He ordered.

Lance deflated. _Great. _He pulled his wallet from his pocket, shimmying the driver's license out of the tight slot it was wedged into. Begrudgingly, he placed the white plastic in the cop's extended hand.

The cop smiled. "Thank you for your cooperation, Mr. Thunder." He said, curling his fingers around the license. "You can pick your license back up later this week. _After _you see your doctor."

Lance just grumbled a response. "Do you need a taxi?" asked the cop.

"I've got a cell phone," the weatherman muttered back. The cop shrugged and walked back to his patrol car, muttering something about 'cloudy with a chance of cars'.

Lance sighed and ran his fingers through his normally-perfect hair, and resisted the urge to hit his head against the nearest wall repeatedly. "You _couldn't _have just let it go, could you Lance? You _had _to call the cop and file a report for the insurance claims, and now everyone's gonna think you're _nuts_."

He was a respected member of the community, after all. Sure, he still only worked at the 38th floor of the TV broadcasting service, but he got screen time every night for the weather, and all of Amity knew his name. It wouldn't be long before the cop spread the word about how polished, dignified Lance Thunder was, in fact, insane.

His hands strayed down to cover his eyes and press against his face once more. He sighed again, louder and more frustrated this time. He needed to call his boss and tell her he'd be late for work. _Again. _

Reluctantly, Lance dug his cell phone from his pocket and dialed before pressing it to his ear. The phone seemed to ring for a full minute, and just when Lance started to think he should call back later, his boss picked up. "Lance! You're late." She snapped in her usual tone.

He took a deep breath. "Yes, I know, I—"

"Save it," she told him. "In fact, if you're still at home, stay there. Work's closed for today."

Lance blinked, eyes wide. Finally, a stroke of luck! Maybe things were finally going HIS way for a change. Work never closed, even in city-wide emergencies… "Alright, sure," Lance said, knowing not to look a gift horse in the mouth. "But, I do have to ask… why?"

"The offices are all messed up. The computers are on the fritz, there's paper everywhere—even the cubicles collapsed inward on themselves. It looks like a tornado hit."

Lance nodded. "Well, weirder things have happened," he murmured. _And today's been plenty weird. _

His boss sounded both agitated and resigned. "The staff can't even tell me what _happened. _One minute, everything's fine, and the next, a huge gale barrels through the whole floor and knocks everything over."

Well that certianly _was _strange. Some of the offices at work didn't even have windows. Curious, Lance Thunde frowned. "So no one knows what happened?"

"Nope. Everyone has their own bogus theory. Even the _smart _employees are sprouting the nonsense." She laughed. "You should hear the stories they're telling. Tiffany even said she saw a red Volkswagen fly _straight through _the office."

Lance froze. "A… _flying car?_" he repeated, voice tight.

His boss didn't seem to hear the anxiety in his voice. She laughed like it was an absurd joke. "Yes, a flying car. I had to remind her she works on the 38th floor. Well, anyway, the staff's so shaken, and everything's such a mess, that we're cancelling the 10 o'clock news tonight. Enjoy your day off."

She paused, then laughed, her voice faint. "A flying car. Can you imagine?" Lance Thunder's boss laughed to herself.

Before he could say anything else, she hung up on him, leaving Lance Thunder standing, dumbfounded, in the streets of Amity Park.

.

* * *

_Friendly tip: if you ever see a flying car, don't tell the cops that. It's counter-productive. Even if it is true. _


	35. 7BR Drabbles

Here's a couple of (100 word) drabbles for Bitter Reunions. Meh. With all the rich possibilities, I came up with these obscure bits? Pitiful.

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom

* * *

**Drabbles **

A "Bitter Reunions" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle_  
_

* * *

_._

College Chums

.

Danny looked at the photo his dad showed them of himself and Vlad Masters from their college days. He wondered why had hadn't heard of this great friendship before. Usually his dad would blather on and on about the great old days.

Besides, his dad and Mr. Masters there were four other guys in the picture. The other guys were not posing with friendly grins: more like smirks of revenge and outright dislike. In fact, the camera had caught them just before they dumped something nasty over their heads.

What had his Dad and Vlad done to engender such enmity?

.

* * *

.

Missed Opportunity

.

Vlad Plasmius flew above the Fenton's van as it moved toward the state line. He wrestled with himself about staging another attack. He positioned himself behind a billboard. Jack was driving, if he moved quickly he could overshadow him and take over the controls to the RV. Daniel was sitting next to him in the front seat. A surprise attack might give him enough time to shock the unsuspecting boy before he could react.

Making his decision, he released the electricity unused, shorting out the 'Now Leaving Wisconsin' sign.

Ever afterwards he wondered if he had done the right thing.

.


	36. 6WYW Phenetics

**Episode 8: "Prisoners of Love" livestreaming tonight at 7pm and 12am EST. /pieinthesky**

* * *

**Phenetics**

A "What You Want" Fanfiction

By sapphireswimming_  
_

* * *

_._

"No need to worry," he declared proudly. "You can sit this one out, Danny, 'cause Tucker Fantom's on the case!"

"Tucker Phantom?" Danny repeated, caught more than a little off guard by everything that was happening. Desiree loose. The flying car. Tucker having ghost powers. Taking his name… He put up his hands in a placating gesture as he began, "Okay, besides the fact that the name is totally not original…"

"What do you mean, not original?" Tucker huffed indignantly.

"Uh, I mean, Tucker Phantom is kinda the same thing as Danny Phantom." Danny nonplussed.

"Not 'Phantom', you idiot," Tucker corrected. "'Fantom.' It's Tucker Fantom. So I can keep the 'T.F. as in too fine' gag."

"Oh! I get it." Danny cried, sitting up straight in the backseat. "Spelled with an 'f', not a 'ph'."

"Exactly."

"Uh, figments of my imagination," the blonde surfer stuttered, interrupting them. "Can you focus on the task at hand? Like, uh, the fact that we're totally about to crash!"

.

* * *

**I've written two stand alone fics that also come from this episode: Unintended** s/8326453/1/Unintended **and Jumping at Shadows** s/7807967/1/Jumping_at_Shadows


	37. 4AOTKGS Clothes Makes the Man

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom. Or the Fenton Works logo.

* * *

**Clothes Makes the Man (200)**

An "Attack of the Killer Garage Sale" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle_  
_

* * *

_._

Danny gave his outfit a tug to adjust it and grinned to himself. It felt strange to be wearing something other than his usual tee shirt. Strange but good.

Opening the door Danny was greeted by Dash wearing not the high-end sweats he had been expecting but …. Danny's signature tee shirt.

"Uh..Dash?"

Dash looked at him contemptuously leaning against the door frame. "Oh, right, right. Since you're not part of my usual posse, you didn't get the email. You see, after buying that computer stuff, I didn't have enough money to buy the sweat suit so I changed the dress code to loser chic."

"Oh, swell." Danny mumbled and he crossed the threshold. Now this was 'in'?

There was only one place Dash and his buddies could have gotten those tee shirts. The same place he had. Years ago his parents had ordered a whole slew of custom made tee shirts with the Fenton Works logo. In assorted sizes that would probably last him the rest of his life. The cheep printing had peeled off leaving a faded red oval.

His parents had probably made more money selling the old tee shirts than he had at the yard sale!

.


	38. 8POL Allusion

**I did this to dedicate the only episode I got online in time to watch the livestreaming Tanger-Catnip put up (or Tigera-I think)**

* * *

**Allusion**

A "Prisoners of Love" Fanfiction

By TheDPFangurl ("Hi")

July 21, 2012

100 Word Poem- Wouldn't call it exactly a drabble.**  
**

* * *

I was sitting, chained with ecto-bonds. My prize floating right behind _him_.

...

Guards at my side, floating and focused. Behind me, beside me, everywhere I look.

...

All my enemies at one table. Skulker, Desiree, Lunch Lady serving me food. It was a nightmare.

...

Pain. Truce. Act. Attack. Kick. Everything was one big blur. And I find myself back-to-back with Skulker.

...

Heading back to get my prize, and finally my freedom. Wall crashing, door kickin', attacks... everywhere.

...

Today was more than heart-pounding action. Was more than a run. Was more than a simple fair fight.

...

It was an escape from Alcatraz.

* * *

**I wanted to contribute something.**


	39. 8POL The Most Thoughtful Gift

**During/after "Prisoners of Love". Maddie unwraps her gift thinking Jack got her fudge. Again. And then out pops something completely unexpected...**

* * *

**The Most Thoughtful Gift  
**

A "Prisoners of Love" Fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

Maddie Fenton tore through the rhubarb, ectogun drawn. Her husband ran behind her, hampered by his shorter legs and much heavier bulk.

"BEWARE!" came the shout again as it turned and sped around in a physics-defying turn. She changed direction, chasing down the vile ectoplasmic spook. She could hear Jack fail to turn on a dime, sliding off into the brush. It was up to her now...

The big blue blob flew in a seemingly random pattern before her, goading her with its shouts of "I am the box ghost!" whatever that meant. She'd figure it out after they caught it, got it back to the lab, and dissected it to learn its inner workings.

Suddenly it stopped and turned to face her. "BEWARE!" it shouted right at her. She answered by firing a shot directly into its stomach. It cried out and veered off faster than she could run.

Maddie stood in the middle of the mown field, hay stacks all around her, and watched the ghost disappear into the night. Still, she'd gotten a good shot, maybe even injured it. It's reaction alone could provide valuable data.

The sound of a stampeding ox heralded Jack's arrival. "Aww, it got away," he pouted. "We'll never catch a-"

Maddie turned around and kissed him hard enough to leave him weak in the knees.

"Wha?" he asked.

"You caught a ghost!" she cried. "And instead of dissecting it while I was gone you wrapped it up for an anniversary gift. Oh, Jack, this was the best present ever!"

"It was?" Jack didn't remember catching a ghost. No, he'd just wrapped up three pounds of fudge and called it a day. Still, if she was gonna kiss him like that then he'd be a fool not to go along with it. "I mean, of course it was! I wanted to give you something special."

"It's times like these that make me so happy I married you," she said as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I love you, Maddie." He pulled her close.

"I love you, Jack."

Across the field Danny watched as his parents kissed and made up. He sighed happily, knowing they weren't going to get a divorce. He didn't even notice the Box Ghost right behind him until...

"BEWARE!"

Danny shrieked and jumped five feet straight up as the Box Ghost flew off cackling.

.

* * *

**See the DA group (through-dp . deviantart) for a comic about the present. ^^  
**


	40. 8POL A Personal Nightmare

**A Personal Nightmare**

A "Prisoners of Love" 100 word Drabble

By Avearia

* * *

.

Divorced.

_Divorced._

She said the word. She said it _twice. _

Oh god, they couldn't get divorced.

Divorce meant closing Fentonworks. Jack could never handle the business alone.

Divorce meant custody battles. Bitter fighting. Staking claims. Tearing the family he loved apart.

Divorce meant possibly moving away from the only friends he ever knew—and from the town he swore to protect.

Worst of all, divorce meant new step-parents. And if his parents actually broke up, if his mom _actually _walked out, Danny knew that creep Vlad wouldn't hesitate to swoop in and pick up the pieces.

And thatwas _unacceptable_.

.

* * *

_A/N: I used to think 'Prisoners of Love' was earlier in the season than this. FAR earlier. Now that I know it takes place immediately after 'Bitter Reunions', Danny's reaction to the divorce suddenly makes much more sense. But, eh, it's just a theory. Anyway, please review, critique appreciated. _


	41. 8POL Escape Artist

**Escape Artist**

A "Prisoners of Love" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Walker continued his inspection of his prison facilities. He checked the locks, the bars, the gates, and the cells. He inspected the guards and checked their weapons, handcuffs, gear, and reviewed procedures.  
His wrist com buzzed. The gate guards announced his arrival. Walker signaled to his escort team and they opened the gate and let the police van in. The back doors opened and a short humanoid ghost spritely stepped out, grinning broadly. He spread his arms wide and turned to survey his audience.

"Warden Walker! I'm here to see if you will accept my challenge," he announced in a voice that carried to the listening guards and prisoners alike.

"Do you really think you can escape?" Walker sneered.

"There is no prison that can hold me, no chains that can bind me, and no handcuffs that can keep me restrained," the ghost boasted.

Walker looked the ghost over. Walker gave a nod at his formal suit the ghost wore even if the cut was old fashioned, but other than that he didn't look too impressive. Rather short and stocky, his curly hair like dark smoke, was parted in the middle but he bore no claws, teeth or other obvious natural weapons.

"If you can't escape, you agree to my terms?" Walker questioned.

"One thousand years of servitude." The ghost agreed readily. "And if I do escape, then you agree to my terms?"

"I will publically admit to your escape," Walker agreed.

"Under the terms of this spell, that makes this binding, so do your worst!" his grey eyes flared with a ghostly glow at taking on the challenge.

Gesturing toward his guards, Walker commanded, "Strip him. Make sure he's not carrying any hidden tools or keys."

The ghost floated passively while they removed his coat, starched high collared shirt, shoes, and trousers.

After a search the guards reported. "He's clean."

Next, the police raised their batons and fired green ectoplasm that bound the cocky little ghost's wrists and ankles in glowing shackles.

"Don't worry, we have some police jewelry to replace your nice jacket." Walker grinned and ordered his underlings to bring in a crate. "I had these made especially for you. No ghosts can break them."

Heavy chains were lifted from the box and then wound about the body before being fastened into place with a massive lock. The ghost looked confident although the weight of the chains was so heavy his feet dragged on the ground when he tried to float as the guards lead him down the hall toward the waiting cell.

The prisoners called and hooted through the bars of their cells as the ghost was escorted past them to be barred and locked into a cell at the end of the row. The cells on this particular row were reserved for the most infamous prisoners: those with afterlife sentences or worse who had nothing to lose.

"What's he in for?" asked one of the prisoners.

"I don't know," called back another from the other side of the hallway.

"But it seems his clothes must also be guilty since they are being locked in a separate cell."

"They must have broken the rules and gotten arrested by the fashion police," another quipped.

The Warden growled at them to stop and the prisoners subsided to a murmur as they craned their necks to watch the guards throw the small ghost inside and bar and lock the door.

"I'll be in my office when you give up, yell for the guards and they'll let me know to start the counter on your thousand years." Walker chuckled as he ostentatiously pocketed the key to the cell door.

.

* * *

.

Walker shared a rare moment of camaraderie with his men.

"If only they were all so easy," said Bullet, his second in command. "But I'm afraid they're not all going to just walk in and asked to be handcuffed and locked in the maximum security cell."

"How long do you think it will take him to give up?" another speculated.

"The sooner he does the sooner we'll start the timing on his sentence," pointed out a third guard.

Bullet shrugged, "He'll get hungry and need to eat eventually."

"Seeing how the lunch lady is working off her term as prison cook, I'm  
not sure if that is an incentive or a deterrent," the guard chuckled.

"It might take a while," Walker predicted, "He's an arrogant little snot of ectoplasm."

"I'm not inclined to be in such a hurry to remove those chains even when he does give up. He could do with a little lesson in humility," Bullet added.

"Perhaps, I could at that," a new voice interrupted. "But you are evidently not the one to teach me."

The warden who was looking at Bullet at the time, saw his second in command's jaw drop and turned in time to see the arrogant ghost in question, impeccably dressed, making a condescending bow.

"I'm sorry it took so long, Warden Walker. I had trouble finding your office and I had to ask for directions from some of the Ghost Zone's finest."

Walker could see a troop of his guards behind him in the doorway. There was no way he was going to keep this quiet. Then the ghost went on to make a casual comment that made the warden's heart freeze.

"While I was at it I let the other prisoners out, too."

"What!" Walker gasped.

"Oh don't worry," the little ghost continued with a laugh "I locked them all in again…in different cells."

With a growled command, the warden sent some men to check. The returned quickly, confirming what the erstwhile prisoner had told them.

"Well, as much as I appreciate the fine accommodations you have provided for me here, I must be on my way." Giving a flourish the ghost tossed a card embossed with the initials HH. "Remember, if anyone asks, you must tell them how you couldn't hold the Handcuff King."

He set a hat on his head and gestured to the guards to escort him out.

"How did you do it?" Bullet cried after him.

"Revealing my secrets were never part of the deal." the well dressed ghost called over his shoulder. "Now just remember your part of the bargain, after all I risked a thousand years incarceration for my reputation."

Walker sourly watched the ghost go. He would uphold his end of the deal. It was a rule he had agreed to after all. He wondered how long it would take for this to fade from the memories of all the guards and prisoners who had witnessed it.

.

* * *

.

So Walker was in an especially foul mood when three days later, Danny Phantom engineered a prison break and by inexplicably turning human simply walked from right out of his prison, taking the contraband with him. Fortunately, he had agreed to no binding spell that would keep him from recapturing and incarcerating the halfa.  
.

* * *

**Authors Note: If you haven't figured out the identity of the mysterious ghost who got the better of Walker, he was born Ehrich Weiss but was known by his stage name. The Handcuff King was one of his self promoted titles. He had a standing challenge that he could spring any restraints the local law enforcement would like to try and he really did pull off a jail break similar to the one described.**


	42. 5SI Haunted Locker

**How did the legend of the haunted locker of 724 get started? Based on a true story. **

** This is gratitude to my daughter, who had her own "haunted" locker experience. **

** Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom**

* * *

**Haunted Locker  
**

A "Splitting Images" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

"Well, Jazzy-pants," her father greeted her, "how did your first day of high school go?"

"It went fine. Here's a bunch of forms that need to be signed. I already filled in the information."

She handed as sheaf of papers to her parents and then took out her planner. Danny could see that something had been written in the homework section.

"You already have homework? On your first day?" her brother snickered.

"High school is not like middle school," Jazz answered with authority. "You have to hit the ground running."

"What's your assignment? Create a device to find a weak point between our dimension and where ghosts live?" asked Dad.

"Close, it's a creative writing assignment," Jazz answered.

"Because that's what I've been working on all day," Her father said proudly. He held up a mirror with a tangle of wires trailing from a breadboard glued to the back. I've used a coating of ectoplamic doped paint to silver the back. The frame came from an old prototype experiment from college. As soon as I finish the wiring, I'll be able to use it to find weak points to the ghost zone."

"Good luck with that, Dad," Danny said neutrally.

"I was rather expecting a more challenging assignment but I suppose they are going easy with us since it is the first one," Jazz sighed.

"So what are going to write about?" their father asked.

That's what I'm trying to decide. I want to write a meaningful story about an important issue that inspires social change," Jazz declared.

"Why don't you write about ghosts? You can warn the world about the danger they represent," her mother suggested.

"Mom, writing horror stories is not going to change to world for the better."

Maddie sighed in turn. Debating this with her daughter would only promote an argument and she had too much to do to get into another fight about the existence of spectral beings. So she decided to change the subject.

Turning to Danny she asked, "So how was your first day?"

"Oh about what you expect. Got my class schedule, teachers went over class rules, and got clobbered by Dash."

"Danny are you still having problems with bullying?" his mother said with some concern.

"Don't worry Danny-boy, in a few years the old Fenton genes will hit puberty you'll hit your growth spurt and then he won't think of hitting you."

"Great. I just have to put up with a few years of pounding first," Danny sighed.

"Danny if it is a problem you should report him to the administration," said Jazz.

"Not likely, he's the star player on practically every sports team. That and his Dad's on the PTA board."

"Danny? Do you want us to talk to the principal?" His mother asked.

"No, thanks. I can handle it," he hastily assured them.

The last thing he needed was for his jump-suited parents to show up at school. He had rather been hoping that the memory of the last time they had shown up to school suspecting a ghost attack had faded from some of his classmate's memories. Such interference could only backfire by putting him in the spotlight for increased harassment.

"Well if you're sure?" said is mother hesitantly.

"Besides Tuck and I can stay out of his way," Danny reassured her.

"Well, if you have any problems, you be sure to tell us, sweetheart." His mother gave him a quick hug and returned to her papers.

"Hey!" said Jazz "That's what I could write about! Bullying."

"As long as there are ghosts in it," her father insisted.

"I just hope my writing is powerful enough," She fretted.

"I'll be glad to proof it if you want me to," her mother offered.

"We are going to have to read it out loud to the class," Jazz said.

"Don't worry, Jazzerincess" her father reassured her, "Fentons never have trouble with public speaking, as long as it's about ghosts."

.

* * *

.

Danny hadn't given Jazz's assignment any further thought although his sister was positive it would end all bullying forever until about two weeks later. He was busily trying to juggle the hot chocolate chip cookies he had snatched from a tray Mom had just pulled out of the oven when Jazz came home.

"How did your story go?" she asked.

"Well, I did get the best grade in the class but on the whole I'm rather disappointed in the lack of discussion about bullying. It did have some peculiar results."

Mrs. Fenton poured her children glasses of milk. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well, I think it caught people's attention but not in the way I had hoped," She sighed. "I thought I had found away to get the urgency of the problem to my audience but they seem to have completely missed the point."

"How so?" her mother asked using a spatula to remove the cookies from the tray onto a cooling rack.

"All they could focus on was the ghost story aspect."

Danny was so wrapped up in the warm chocolatety goodness that he almost missed what his sister said.

"Wait….ghosts? You actually wrote a ghost story?" he asked in surprise.

"Well, I thought it would capture the audience's attention. I told a story about a boy who went to Casper High and was bullied so much he took his own life. Then he was doomed as a ghost to a live in the haunted locker he had died in coming out to seek revenge against the students who had tormented him and the administration who had let it happen. It was full of poignant pathos."

"What happened?" Danny asked.

"I expected the students to band together and pledge to stand together against bullying and to shame the administration into enforcing the bullying policy. But instead all they talked about was the ghost story."

Jazz sighed and helped herself to a cookie. "They seem to think that because I'm the daughter of ghost hunting parents, I was telling a real story. Lancer threatened to take points off for not following the assignment which was to write a fictional story until I explained that I had made it up."

"So what happened?" Maddie asked.

"Well, I don't think the students believed me. At break when I went to my locker to get my lunch, there was a whole crowd of people waiting there to watch me open my locker," Jazz answered.

"Why were they doing that?" asked Danny.

"Well, I couldn't very well pick some random locker. I mean it would be mean to the person whose locker it is. Even if it is completely made up, how would you like it if someone was telling stories that someone had died in your locker?"

"Yuck." agreed Danny.

"Exactly. So I used my own locker number: 724. Apparently rumor spread and so there was a whole crowd of people waiting to see what happened when I opened my locker."

Danny laughed so hard he choked on his milk. "Ha! My sister has a haunted locker."

"Well, if you have a haunted locker, here's just the thing to go with it." Her mother handed her the Fenton Dimension Detector.

"I thought Dad needed it to find weak points between the dimensions," Jazz said.

"Oh we did that. Found a weak place in the basement. Since we're done with it, you might as well use it for a mirror."

.


	43. 8POL Beach Comber

**I was kind of thinking about how come the ghosts blamed Danny for landing them in prison, since he was only returning them to the GZ. But if Walker was waiting to catch them, it would help explain it.**

* * *

**Beach Comber**

A "Prisoners of Love" Fanfiction

by MsFrizzle

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.

The flows and eddies in the ghost zone meant that the flotsam and jetsam from the human world tended to end up in certain places.

The Box Ghost had stumbled onto this find and spent a many happy hours browsing though the various and sundry items that had ended up here. He especially delighted in packages that had been lost in delivery.

He wasn't the only one. Walker had known about it for years but since the ghost boy started capturing and sending ghosts back to the ghost zone it became the perfect place to set up a "speed" trap.

.

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**Livestream of episode 9: My Brother's Keeper tonight at 7pm and 12am EST at livestream /pieinthesky (with an epic preshow starting an hour and 45 minutes before that)**

**Also, we have a forum: throughdp . freeforums . org so feel free to chat it up! :)**


	44. 6WYW Monkey's Paw

**Disclaimer: I don't own the The Monkey's Paw by W.W. Jacobs, published in England in 1902. Or Danny Phantom.**

* * *

**Monkey's Paw  
**

A "What You Want" Fanfiction

by MsFrizzle

* * *

.

The discussion in the teachers' room was all about how a bad cold virus was running rampant through the school. Thank goodness none of the staff had come down with it.

"I hate to say it but it kind of feels like a holiday without the "Russian Mafia Twins" had said Mrs. Cant.

Secretly Lancer had to agree with his colleague who taught 11th grade chemistry. Those two were voted most likely to get expelled. They had been in his office again yesterday, after they had been caught on the school roof.

After yesterday, could he be blamed for thinking how nice it would be to have one, easy day?

The above mentioned trouble makers were only the icing on the cake of a particularly trying week.

The team had suffered a spectacular loss to their rivals, the Townshed Eagles. Even Dash's mid-game rally hadn't helped when it faded too quickly.

A mysterious prankster had plagued the school causing havoc in the band room by pouring soda into a tuba and some sort of panic in the lunchroom. He, himself had not been immune, falling prey to the jimmied water fountain while his belt had been removed.

More disconcerting was the damage done to the science room, lots of fragile equipment had been destroyed. There was no ready explanation for the way the blackboard had been smashed almost as if it had been hit by a cannon or the odd burn marks on the wall. Was the crushed biology skeleton random damage or some sinister warning?

Mrs. Cant suspected the twins but there was no proof.

Some of the students were acting weird, but then again, it had been a stressful week.

And to top it all off, someone had hacked into the school records and messed with the grades. Fortunately, it there was a back up, so the grades had been restored, but it was frustrating that they couldn't catch the culprit and worrisome that they didn't know how it was done.

Mr. Lancer took a deep breath to put it out of his mind as he entered the freshman English class.

"Is this everyone?" he asked in surprise as he surveyed the room. Fully a third of the students were absent.

"Oh well, please open your books to page 125 where, if you have done last night's reading assignment you will know the story "The Monkey's Paw" by W.W. Jacobs" the teacher directed. "Would anyone like to give us a synopsis?"

Chelsea raised her hand. "It's about this magic monkey's hand that lets people make three wishes, but they always turn out bad. Like this guy wishes for a bunch of money and then his son dies and they get that exact amount of money from the factory where he worked. Then his wife wishes her son would come back to life and he does as a mutilated zombie or something so they destroy the hand."

"In other words: be careful what you wish for." summarized Lancer. "Can anyone give me some real life examples?"

The class went smoothly and Lancer realized that with certain students absent, there was a lack of the usual interruptions.

Fenton wasn't sleeping or asking to use the bathroom.

He didn't have to confiscate any beeping electronics from Foley.

Manson was not trying to derail the topic by soap-boxing about animal rights.

Dash was not picking on the more vulnerable students.

The boys weren't staring at Paulina instead of paying attention.

Kwan wasn't passing notes to Star.

There were no supernatural disturbances.

While the attentive and enthusiastic students went on to discuss the genre and other literary elements, Lancer smiled. He couldn't have wished for a better class.

A sudden chill went down his spine. He _had_ wished for a class like this…..but not at the cost of having half the student body sick. It was just a coincidence…..right?

.


	45. 9MBK It's a Set Up

**It's a Set Up  
**

A "My Brother's Keeper" Fanfiction

by MsFrizzle

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.

Alan swore as an unfortunate jostle sent the dominoes tumbling against each other.

Mickey looked over the plans for setting up the domino display. It seemed to be designed to be impossible to set up without accidentally being triggered. "Whose idea was this anyway?" Mickey grumbled.

"Lancer promised me he'd give me extra credit if I set it up the dominoes," Dash said, "so that means you get to help me. Let me know when you're done."

Mori growled when Dash had sauntered off. "I can't believe we got stuck doing this."

Neville sighed deeply. "I was going to work on my models, since the school psychiatrist has said that was the closest we were ever going to get to our dreams was gluing bits of plastic together."

Uncoordinated fingers triggered another landslide. "If only we could glue them in place long enough to set them up."

"I so don't feel like doing this. It's not like I care about spirit week. It's just for them jerky jocks anyway." Mickey grumbled.

Neville reached into his backpack and pulled out a bottle of plastic glue. A smile of understanding passed between them.

When Lancer pushed the first domino over, nothing happened.

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	46. 9MBK Enthralled

**Enthralled**

A 'My Brother's Keeper' fanfiction

By PuppetMaster55

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.

"Oh, look. The little loser ghost has a few baby helpers." It crooned at the half-human ghost boy, enjoying the contact and power it held over him, and positively relishing the insecurity that radiated off of the boy like cosmic energy from a supernova. It was just so... _delicious_. Oh, how it longed to have the boy under his thrall, if only because of the sheer _potential_ the half-human held. As an imprint, it knew more than any other ghost how strong another ghost was or could become (one of the perks of being an imprint was the innate ability to gauge the strength of another ghost by the strength of the feelings they held towards their obsession; the stronger the feelings, and subsequently their obsession, the stronger the ghost), and this half-human had the potential to eclipse even the dread Pariah Dark.

This boy was _scrumptious_ in a way Penelope wasn't. Where Penelope was like a bittersweet dark chocolate that was warm and gooey with a lingering sweetness that thrummed throughout its' entire being and made the imprint _purr_ from the deepest depths of its' core, the half-human boy was a little red chili pepper, hot and sharp and spicy with an all-encompassing burning heat that tingled and vibrated every iota of its' being with such _ferocity_ that was breathtaking.

It _wanted_ the boy, to _own_ him with such completeness that he did nothing without informing and consulting the imprint beforehand.

"Do not call me a _loser_!" Oh, the anger in that denial! The imprint's toothy grin widened even as it was shoved off of the boy. It watched with amusement as the boy – Danny, it reminded itself, because it wouldn't do to gain him for itself if it didn't call the boy by his preferred name like it did Penelope – prepare an ectoblast in both hands, much like the imprint had done moments earlier, and decided to do a test of the newly achieved foothold it had gained over Danny (the wolf bite to Danny's spectral tail was a much more successful endeavor to enthrall the boy than anything else), giving the ethereal teen a taste of the power it could give the boy if – no, _when_ he submitted to the imprint. The ectoblast became much more defined, an almost blinding ray that enveloped and destroyed one of the kiosks in the department store.

The imprint surveyed the damage it had caused, and could _feel_ the depression, guilt, and despair that was going to be created because of their fight, and was pleased to see Danny looking at his hands in surprise and confusion, no doubt because of the intensity of the ectoblast.

"Well, that's enough destruction for today." It said, reverting to its' natural form as it floated up towards the ceiling. It waved at Danny, reveling in the burning heat the boy was giving off as he returned to his baby human helpers. It didn't need to do anything more; it could already see the beginnings of a desire to destroy _everything_, to experience that kind of rush of power again, in the boy's eyes. It was only a matter of time until Danny came seeking the imprint for that rush of energy, _needing_ to fulfill that aching desire that would eventually burn bright enough to make the ghost boy abandon his weaker human traits and companions. Until that time... it could settle for merely being Bertrand, Penelope's lowly assistant in the human world, and pet in the Ghost Zone. "Ta."

After all, what creature, living or dead, would expect the true mastermind to be a lowly imprint such as 'Bertrand'?

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* * *

**Sorry for dropping the ball on updating yesterday- I was out of town. But hopefully you all know the routine enough by now that you realized Episode 10: Shades of Gray is this week's episode. :)**


	47. 9MBK Science and Math

Disclaimer:

I do not own Danny Phantom or Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide.  
Much of this story was plagari – uh adapted – from the episode "Positives and Negatives" written by Rick Groel, and directed by Savage Steve Holland.

* * *

**Science and Math  
**

A 'My Brother's Keeper' fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

"Um, is it me, or is this the worst Spirit Week in the history of Spirit Weeks," Sam observed.

A parade of slumped shouldered, dreary faced students shuffled down the hall to their next class. Danny caught snatches of conversation, which confirmed the depressed mood was spreading though the school.

"Well don't ask me, I'm usually the sour one around here, but compared to everyone else, I'm the Goth Bird of Happiness."

Looking around, Tucker added. "Me too. And we're the only two people in this school who haven't had a session with Dr. Spectra."

Danny stopped in his tracks and grabbed Tucker's PDA "Wait a minute let me see something."

He quickly opened up the video file and scrolled to the scene of him dressed as the Casper High Baby.

"Uh, I was going to erase that." Tucker hastily added.

Danny held it up. "I'm glad you didn't. Look at that. I kept thinking I was seeing my breath; that it was cold. But what if that's my ghost sense. What if Spectra is somehow making people more miserable? What if she's a ghost?"

Sam sighed and grabbed Tucker's shirt, propelling him down the hall. "Only one way to find out."

Fifteen minutes later they emerged with dejected postures from Dr. Spectra's office.

"I hate my life," groaned Tucker.

"I hate your life more." Sam answered.

"Well that confirms it," said Danny. He triggered his transformation and turned invisible and phased through the door into Spectra's office.

In his ghost form Danny could detect the spectral energies that Spectra was inhaling. Immediately he could see it reinforcing her form, strengthening it and removing the signs of stress and wear.

Spectra sat on the edge of her desk. "Man that's good. I'm gonna miss these kids." She looked at the files on her desk. "They are a waterfall of misery."

Suddenly the shape shifting ghost Danny had fought earlier phased into the room. Currently it was in its amorphous blob form.

Spectra looked up expectantly. "There you are. You hooked up the devise?"

"Of course," the ghost answered with self assured wave, "and when the spirit sparklers go up, vaporizing the only chipper kid left in the school, there will be enough misery and anguish in that room to keep us looking young forever."

They grinned gleefully until they were interrupted by the bell. The changed form and left to the assembly anticipating the fulfillment of their plans.  
Danny opened the door and in a few quick sentences filled Sam and Tucker in on Spectra and Bertram's plans to kill Jazz and suck all happiness from the students to enhance their own energies.

"We've got to find a way to save Jazz from death by spirit sparkler," Danny gasped.

"It's more than that," said Sam. "We've got to counter the negative attitude that's spreading though the school."

Well maybe we can counter it with a strong positive force," suggested Tucker. "You know like in science the positive protons balance out the negative electrons."

"Well who is the most up-beat student in the school?" asked Sam.

"That hasn't had the happiness sucked out of them by Spectra yet," added Tucker.

"I think we need a more powerful charge than can be generated by just one person. I can't believe I'm saying this but, we need the cheer leading squad," said Sam.

"I can't believe you said it either," Danny and Tucker chorused.

"Sam, go get the cheer squad, Tucker go see if you can sabotage the spirit sparklers, and I'll go stop Bertram and Spectra." Determination bolstered his orders.

"Why do I have to go get the cheerleaders?" Sam objected.

"Because they won't talk to Tucker." Danny said reasonably.

"They won't talk to you either." Tucker yelled after Danny as Sam dragged him down the hall.

.

* * *

.

"Go!" Sam urged the pom-pom waving cavalry as they marched into the gym but she could tell in moments that it wasn't going to work. Their lackluster voices chanted the cheers showed no enthusiasm. The dejected slump of their shoulders made it clear that Spectra had defeated them too.

It was so bad that Lancer had to take over. But the student body was so dispirited that not even the overweight man's antics could bring a smile to their faces.

"Why didn't it work?" Tucker asked in frustration. "The massed positive attitude should have counteracted Spectra's negativity."

"Well maybe it's more like math instead of science." Sam said.

"You think there's some sort of equation that will solve this?" asked Tucker, already reaching for his calculator.

"What do you get when you multiply and negative times a negative?" Sam asked.

"What are you talking about?" asked Tucker.

"A negative times a negative is a positive." Sam explained.

"And that helps us….how?" asked Tucker

"We've been trying to get counteract her negative attitude with a positive force but It's just not working. No matter what we throw at her she just sucks it in absorbing it like the grounding circuit in a lightening rod." Sam explained. "Fighting her with a positive attitude doesn't work."

"Fighting her and Bertram with fists hasn't worked out so well either." Tucker could hear the tell tale sounds of ecto-blasts and hoped Danny was doing better than he had the last time he had taken them on. Neither wanted to admit that taking on both of them at the same time turned the odds further against the half ghost.

"So we need to try a negative attitude." Sam explained.

"Well there's plenty of negative energy around the school," Tucker said gesturing toward the students around him.

Sam shook her head. "No I don't think so. Look at them; they don't have any energy at all. If Spectra and Bertram could tap them, they wouldn't have bothered with the whole elaborate plan in the first place. She and Bertram need the raw energies of their dismay and shock. No, we need a source of negative energy that she can't tap; one that is immune to shock."

"And where would that be?" Danny asked. "She's seen everyone. There's no one left."

"Please, I'm Goth. I have my sources. You go and see what you can do to sabotage the spirit sparklers." She ran off, dialing her phone as she went.

.

* * *

.

Edging along the wall, Tucker made his way toward the display. He didn't have much time; Jazz was taking her place at the podium. He crawled though the under story of the bleachers avoiding the detritus of discarded trash until he reached the far side. Spectra and Bertram were nowhere in sight. He could see where a long black cord was snaking from the large red trigger to the stand holding the sparklers turned death ray.

Only Mr. Lancer cheered at the end of Jazz's motivational speech. Then he knocked over the first domino setting off the chain reaction.

Out of time, Tucker gave up being inconspicuous and dashed across the floor, throwing himself on the button and yanking out the cord.

He felt a hand on the collar of his shirt. "Mr. Foley, what do you think you're doing?" Lancer demanded.

Lancer snorted with disgust. "Why you would want to spoil a pep rally is beyond me, but you will have plenty of time to tell me why in detention." Lancer reached down and plugged the cord back in.

Sam yelled out. "Wait, Mr. Lancer! Don't push the button!"

Lancer turned to look at Sam as she ran up to the stage. "Care to explain?"

"Uh….. We have some more cheers to present before we set off the spirit sparklers," Sam stalled.

"I didn't authorize it," Lancer frowned.

"I know, but it's not fair that only the cheerleaders get to participate." Sam improvised, "And we always celebrate the sports teams but how about the other teams, like the chess team, the debate team, or the physics-nerds- floor hockey team?"

Jazz spoke up. "Mr. Lancer, pep rallies are supposed to be for everyone; a chance for everyone to show their school spirit. Maybe the reason no one feels like participating is because they don't feel a part of it. Please give them a chance, Mr. Lancer."

Mr. Lancer sighed. "Well, since it is you who asks, and since the cheerleader squad was unable to finish their act, go ahead."

Jazz moved to the podium "Fellow Casper High students, today we are here to celebrate our school. Our school is not just about the popular kids or the athletes, but about all of us. We all deserve to show our school spirit in our own way. So we have a special presentation by….." she read the note that Sam had hastily stuffed into her hand. "…by A Fresh Source of Untapped Dark Hopelessness. And they request that no one clap."

Sam opened the back door to the gym and a group of black garbed, white faced, black lip-sticked, spiked–haired, studded collard denizens from the Skulk and Lurk stalked into the gym. A dark aura of hopelessness seemed to emanate from their totally expressionless faces. They turned to face the students.

In a dead monotone of devoid of all inflection, the first of them began to recite his Goth poetry.

"There is no hope;  
We live in a barren universe of nothingness."

The next girl then declared:

"Every day I look at the sun,  
Yet I feel no warmth."

The Goths needn't have worried about the audience violating the no-clapping etiquette as they sat in stunned silence.

Lancer objected. "Spirit Week is supposed to celebrate our school. It's supposed to be exciting and make people happy with people shouting "Go Ravens!" With his final shout he waved his arms and bumped the table where the dominoes were set up. A domino balanced on the edge of the table tumbled off and it fell on the red button.

Tucker made an abortive lunge but it was too late; the spirit sparklers charged and fired.

"No!" he yelled as a flash of light burned his retinas.

He ran forward but was caught by Sam. "Tucker! Tucker, it's Okay. Danny got her."

Tucker stared at her blankly then sagged with relief panting heavily.

He wasn't the only one staring in shock; Lancer also stood unmoving as he looked at the smoke rising from where his star student had been standing a moment before.

Sam began clapping furiously and yelled "Go Ravens!"

As Lancer turned to look at her in disbelief, Sam continued with fake enthusiasm. "Wow, wasn't Jazz's magic disappearing act, wonderful, Mr. Lancer?"

Lancer recovered quickly, "This wasn't in the plans."

Sam thought fast. "Well, Jazz wanted to save it for a surprise. That's what this pep rally needed; shaking things up a bit, doing things out of the ordinary, celebrating in our different abilities."

Dash stood up. "Jazz is right. Doing the same thing all the time gets boring and it made me feel like I just didn't care. Plus her magic trick was really cool."

"I'm glad Jazz had the poetry. School is about more than just sports," the tuba player called out.

"For the first time feel that this pep rally is for more than just the Jocks. The chess club reached the semi-finals. We deserve a cheer too! Thank you Jazz!" Mickey called out.

"The Goths put into words exactly what I was feeling all week." Paulina exclaimed.

"Now that those feelings have been expressed, It's like I got it off my chest and I can move on." Kwan added.

"I feel so much better now," agreed Star and there were nods of agreement amount the rest of the cheerleaders.

The students began to shout, showing their approval. The cheerleader squad began chanting Jazz's name and the rest of the student body quickly took it up with rhythmic clapping.

"Hey, no clapping," reproved a Goth whose thin slouched figure resembled a black hockey stick - with spikes.

"I'm going to get banned from the Skulk and Lurk," Sam moaned.

"Well, I better go get my star student." Mr. Lancer beamed. He could feel the mood lifting. It seemed the first time he had seen smiles all week.

"How did you know Goth poetry would work?" They jumped at hearing Danny's voice. He looked a bit roughed up and his clothing was in disarray but his expression had cleared of the scowl he had been wearing all week.

"Let's just say the math worked out right." Sam said a bit smugly.

.

* * *

**.**


	48. 8POL Filing

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* * *

**Filing (300)  
**

A 'Prisoners of Love' fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

"Look out!" Sam shrieked as the castle grew larger and ever larger in front of them until it swelled up to fill up the entire windshield. "Tucker," she yelled again to point out (rather needlessly), "we're going to crash!"

In agreement, he closed his eyes, bracing himself as best he could in the next split second, for the inevitable collision of man-made metal and glass shell against ghost-made monolithic castle.

Which never came.

Cautiously peering out from behind their hands, the two humans looked around at the building, rooms, _stone walls_, rushing past them, around them, _through _them.

When a few moments had passed and it seemed like they were somehow still in one piece, they let out a shaky sigh together.

"We… are actually alive." Sam's eyes were still open wide.

"File that under: things that would have been nice to know before," Tucker breathed out as he gripped the steering wheel tighter and looked at the controls.

"In the Ghost Zone… we're the ghosts," Sam realized.

There was a pause before Tucker broke it by exclaiming, "File that under: coolest thing ever! It's like we've got ghost powers. Remind me to pester Danny to let us back into this place," Tucker said, shaking his head in excitement and barely managing to hold in a fist pump.

The goth had to resist the unusual urge (well, not so unusual in the case of dealing with this particular meat lover) to whack him upside the head.

"Never," she growled. "Never again. Are we coming back here. We get Danny, get back, and forget this ever happened."

"Haha, nope," Tucker chuckled. "That… is never going to happen. No chance of that, no way, no sir. I've got a taste of what ghost powers are like, man, and this could get addicting."

.

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**.**


	49. 9MBK Turning Point

**SRL541 brought up a really interesting point that I wanted to explore. She gets credit for getting the gears in my head turning for this one. :3**

* * *

**Turning Point (300)  
**

A 'My Brother's Keeper' fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

Dash and Kwan slumped dejectedly against their lockers, nearly crushed by what they'd just been told in the school counselor's office just a few feet away.

"My future isn't going to be anything like it is now as the King of Casper High; it's going to be terrible," Dash wailed, passing a hand through his slicked back blond hair. The black rims around his tired eyes showed how much stress and distress he suffered from this crushing blow to his outlook.

"Well," he rallied. "If that's how my life is going to be, then I can at least make sure that Fenton's is worse." He pushed off against his locker and headed off, rather zombie-like. "Where is that little pipsqueak…?" he muttered.

"At least you're going to have a future," Kwan responded, despondently to the friend who had walked away. His hands fell listless at his sides as he addressed the empty air. "She said I was going to be a hobo. I didn't know they even had those anymore!"

His mind raced to images Lancer had shown them of homeless camps during the Great Depression the previous week. He hadn't cared then. But now, the battered tin cups and toe-less boots showed him a future he couldn't cope with.

"It can't be…" he breathed. "I can't let that be my future! That's all Miss Spectra thinks I'll amount to. And it probably is," he agreed, as he really thought about it. "But still, I have to try. I'll do my best… in football, in class, writing poetry for Lancer's stupid English assignments. I'll prove her wrong. I'll make something of my life. I'll be a lawyer or a doctor or a businessman or a teacher or a football player or even a janitor, but I won't be a hobo!"

.

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**And why does no one ever write Kwan...?  
**


	50. 10SOG Benefactor

**Somehow, this ended up much more serious than I intended. Valerie's thoughts on her mysterious benefactor, along with her first forays into ghost hunting.**

* * *

**Benefactor  
**

A 'Shades of Gray' fanfiction

By PuppetMaster55

* * *

.

Valerie should have been suspicious. Receiving a box filled with ghost-hunting (_destroying_, she replaced in her mind) equipment ranging from massive ectoguns and tiny saw blades that were meant to be thrown like ninja stars to a thermos-shaped object meant to contain ghosts and a hoverboard supplied with missiles the likes of which most of the world didn't believe possible, along with an equally high-tech battle suit equipped with hidden blasters and precision targeting system should have raised more than a few red flags in her mind.

That someone had taken the time to see the truth, that her dad's security had worked perfectly and neither he nor the rest of his security team could have foreseen an attack from ghosts (_ghosts!_, she thought with a small amount of fear, remembering the various ghosts that had attacked the high school since almost the beginning of the school year, and how powerless everyone had been against the creatures), and that the complete ruination of the Gray family name and fortune was unwarranted, was like a breath of fresh air. Still, that this mysterious benefactor had sent her a means to get even with the ghosts instead of enough money for Valerie and her dad to keep their house and all their things was irritating, but she was never one to look a gift horse in the mouth. She now had the means to destroy the ghost boy's life– afterlife– _whatever_, and that was more than enough for her.

Her first attempt at destroying the ghost boy wasn't the best, but that stray ninja blade proved that it was possible to make a ghost hurt. For the first time in months, Valerie was able to stand on equal footing against her enemies again, and she was determined to make the ghost boy hurt like she'd been when he ruined her father's reputation, and again when he reappeared to mangle what little of their things they had been able to keep after the lawsuit.

Her second time wasn't much better, with the ghost boy overpowering her without much effort on his part, leaving her stuck in one of the basketball nets of her school's gym. The darned thermos had jammed, and she'd lost her chance to trap the ghost boy. It furthered her resolve to get stronger and crush the ghost boy under her foot.

The third time they'd clashed, she'd had the advantage until his ghost dog had appeared. _Again_. And she'd been unable to stop either of them from entering Axion Labs, presumably to raze the building to the ground and finish the job they'd started the last time, only for the ghost boy to come out of one of the walls with a chew toy, of all things, which his darn dog happily took and faded away while playing with. And then he'd tried to help her, offering his hand to help her up. She'd pointed one of her wrist blasters at him, of course, but it still confused her at the time. Later, Valerie explained the ghost boy's strange behavior as trying to get her to drop her guard, and forgot all about it.

So she should have been suspicious when a box appeared on the floor of the cafeteria addressed to her, holding a replacement thermos as well as several special batteries that were used to power all her weapons, but she wasn't. She ignored the disturbing thought that maybe her benefactor wasn't quite the person he or she seemed to be, and that there was something much more sinister going on, and she should lock away all her weapons and tell her dad, in favor of finding time in her day to practice her aim. Whoever this mysterious benefactor was, he or she wasn't using her as a pawn in some greater game to be sacrificed when the time came, right?

Valerie should have been suspicious.

.

* * *

**Livestream of episode 11: Fanning the Flames (with a Ghostbusters pre-show) at 7pm and 12am EST. /pieinthesky  
**


	51. 10SOG Squeaky

**Really not happy with the direction my muse went with this one. If anything, I blame whoever in the chat mentioned that the ghost dog was alive at one point, and wasn't the only guard dog for Axion Labs. Reminded me of when my family had to put down our elderly dog this past February, whom we've had since '97. And yes, Master is Damon Gray.**

* * *

**Squeaky**

A "Shades of Gray" fanfiction

By PuppetMaster55

* * *

.

Spooky chewed on his Squeaky, enjoying how his Squeaky squeaked each time he bit down and squeaked each time he opened his mouth, holding Squeaky down in his paws for a better grip on Squeaky so Squeaky wouldn't slip away and get caught in the wall again like it did many times before. Spooky loved his Squeaky, and did not like when Jojo or Ferdinand stole his Squeaky and chewed Squeaky because Squeaky was Spooky's Squeaky and not Jojo's or Ferdinand's and–

"Spooky! Here, boy!"

Oh boy! Master was calling! Spooky left Squeaky outside of his tiny building that he slept in and ran to sit obediently at Master's feet, looking up at his Master for orders. Master's face-hairs twitched as he smiled and reached down with one of his dark hands to pet Spooky behind the ears, saying something that Spooky didn't understand, only catching that his name was said several times as he enjoyed being rubbed behind the ears and in the one spot his paw never quite manages to reach–

Spooky whined as he saw the scary white-coat people with cold hands approach him with some strange thing in the hand of one of them, something see-through with some strange liquid in it that sprayed out of the tiny thin tube-thing as the white-coat tapped it, and Spooky looked away, seeing the other white-coats doing the same thing with Jojo and Ferdinand and all the other guard dogs whose job it was to sniff for intruders into Master's building and chase down any intruders they caught and ow that sharp poke hurt Spooky. Spooky looked towards his resting building for Squeaky, wanting to get back to chewing his Squeaky except Squeaky wasn't there where was Squeaky why was Spooky so tired he did not want to be tired he wanted his Squeaky and nothing would stop him from getting his Squeaky and not Jojo's or Ferdinand's or anyone else's except Spooky was so tired and he did not want to be because then he would fall asleep and one of the other guard dogs would take away his Squeaky like they did when Master called them and why was everything getting so dark...

.

* * *

.


	52. 10SOG Experimentation

**Ectoguns are fairly easy to test but what about the more specialized equipment? Who else is Vlad going to test things on? We never did get to see Valerie use that thermos...**

* * *

**Experimentation**

A "Shades of Gray" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

Sometimes shady human contacts were more useful than anything to be found in the Ghost Zone.

Vlad Masters read over the patent application once more. Maddie's handiwork could be seen all over the diagrams, the descriptions, the legal forms and yet she was handing that big oaf Jack half credit for the invention. The patent was pending, likely to be rejected on the grounds of "ghosts don't exist". Nothing to stand in the way of taking these plans and building his own.

The technology was deceptively simple. A charge of depleted ectoplasm in the thermos created a sucking effect that would draw in any sort of spectral influence the mouth was pointed at. Really the only new ideas went into the filter that kept the charge from draining away the energy of any ghost captured and the valve that controlled access to the charge within.

In no time at all Vlad had his own version. "The Masters thermos," he said, christening it with all the originality of a cheap knockoff. Now all he needed was to test it.

Hmm...

Vlad transformed and split himself. One Plasmius aimed the thermos at the other and then opened the cap. He pressed the button to open the valve that exposed the depleted ectoplasm to ambient spectral energies and...

There was a whooshing sound, as though he were being dragged to the bottom of a river. The currents toyed with his body, forcing the air from his lungs, tugging his limbs every which way as the water laughed in delight at having another victim to tear apart...

Suddenly it... stopped. He couldn't see anything in the oppressive darkness. The gentle tug of the depleted ectoplasm made his feet itch but that was it. Now to command his duplicate to close the valve so he could fly out of here.

"Somehow I think someone made the suction too strong," drawled his own voice right behind him.

Vlad turned around to see the glowing red eyes of his duplicate. But... if his duplicate was in here then who was...

"Oh cream puffs," he swore.

"So... Checkers?"

*****

Skulker wandered into his employer's lab. He needed help getting this stupid PDA to stop auto-updating. Weird, though, that the lab was empty. This was their usual agreed-upon date and time, where was he?

A clatter drew his attention. Ugh, the ghost boy's thermos. Although this one had red accents instead of the boy's favored green. And it was shaking. Someone must be trapped inside!

Skulker picked up the thermos and started fiddling with it.

"Shut off the valve!" came a muffled shout from within. Skulker looked closer and saw the switch. He flipped the valve closed and opened the cap.

Vlad shot out of the thermos like a bat out of hell. His two selves merged before he even had a chance to hit the floor. Ah, sweet floor... Plasmius changed back to Masters as he laid there.

Skulker couldn't help the amused grin as he looked Vlad over. His hair was mussed halfway out of its ponytail. His ascot was untied and dangling off of his neck. His jacket was unbuttoned and his shirt tugged in every which way.

"Chocolate eclairs, it's **boring** in there!" Vlad groaned.

"Eclairs, eh?" Skulker mocked.

"Shut up." Vlad pulled himself to his feet.

"It's just what I always wanted," Skulker said, cradling the thermos. "Now this is something I can use to trap the ghost boy."

Vlad snatched it away. "Not for you," he snapped. "I have... other plans for this one." He looked at the red suit he was building, tailoring for someone who might become very useful to him. An evil grin spread across his face. "Yes, plans..."

.

* * *

.


	53. 10SOG To Be a Good Dog

**Cujo's experiences before and during "Shades of Gray". I have done terrible things. This story begins when he was alive.**

* * *

**To Be a Good Dog  
**

A "Shades of Gray" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

The night was cold, dark, and always exciting. It was a training night. One of their Guys was leading Spike and Pup around the perimeter of the building. Spike walked purposefully, trying to set a good example for Pup. Pup wanted to make their Guy happy, he really did, but there were all these great smells everywhere. A half-eaten cheeseburger in the trash can, rats wandering along the power lines, squirrels in that tree...

Spike and their Guy turned a corner while Pup was following the smell of a raccoon, stinky raccoon, smelled like he was going for their... oh no! Not the garbage! Pup started barking as he ran after the scent and found that evil, stinky raccoon in their dumpster. It chattered and threw an empty can down at Pup who kept barking, sounding the all-important Alarm.

Their Guys would be so proud of him. He single-handedly protected the garbage dumpster from a stinky raccoon thief.

Their Guys were not proud of him. Pup whined and tried so hard to explain that there was a thief! He **had** to bark the Alarm. Ugh, sometimes it was like their Guys didn't even understand the barks coming out of his mouth. Pup was scolded for his false Alarm. False?! It wasn't false. When he tried to explain this their Guy brought out the Newspaper and told him he was a Bad Dog.

Pup's tail dropped. He wasn't a Bad Dog! He was a Good Dog like Spike and Duke and Missy and Bear. Pup whined and pouted, sad that their Guys now thought he was a Bad Dog. Bad Dogs got fed last. Bad Dogs didn't get to go on Patrol. Bad Dogs had to stay in the Kennel until they could prove they were Good Dogs. He was in for a boring next few nights but at least he had his Binky to keep him company.

Pup was tossed back in the Kennel. He looked around and saw the looks all the others were giving him. Yep, they all knew he was a Bad Dog. Pup whined, tucked his tail between his legs, and padded off to his kennel to chew on his Binky. He laid down but... Wait a minute... He sniffed around, pawed at his blankets but his Binky was missing!

Pup realized the other dogs were snuffing and snorting. He glared at them. They did this! They hid his Binky! Spike looked particularly smug. He must have done it! Pup crouched down and leaped at Spike, tiny voice growling.

It didn't take long for Spike to throw Pup to the floor, his jaws clamped around Pup's middle. Pup whined and whimpered, he just wanted his Binky back!

"Spike! Knock it off!"

Spike glanced over at their Guy and gave him a 'who, me?' look before letting Pup go.

"Let's go, Spike, you're next."

Pup watched as Spike followed their Guy like a Good Dog, tail up as if to taunt Pup for his failure. Pup curled up on the floor and huffed a sigh. When Spike got back he was going to gnaw his ears until he got his Binky!

It wasn't long until their Guy came back. But where was Spike? Spike didn't come back... "Come on, Pup, it's your turn."

Pup got up and all but ran over. This was his chance to prove he was a Good Dog! He kept his tail high and his head straight ahead and trotted right next to their Guy in perfect form.

Wait a minute... Their Guy led him to the V-E-T! This was for another shot?! Pup didn't like shots. Still, he had to prove he was a Good Dog by taking his shot and not squirming or whining or peeing all over the V-E-T again. He let their Guy lift him onto the table.

Oh look, the Boss Guy was here, too. This must be a really important shot! Pup stood still in perfect position so maybe he might convince Boss Guy that he was a Good Dog.

The V-E-T rubbed Pup behind the ears. "I'm sorry about this, little guy."

"Oh come off it, Rob," Boss Guy said. "They're dogs. They don't know what you're saying."

The V-E-T brought out a needle and Pup flinched because it hurt but Good Dogs take their shots and he wanted to be a Good Dog again so he could get his Binky back and protect the Labs without needing Spike to lead him around like he was still a puppy.

He was a Good Dog. He'd prove it. But right now he was getting so sleepy. He didn't remember being this tired and Good Dogs aren't supposed to fall asleep on Patrol but their Guy was petting him and he was so tired...

Maybe just a little nap.

He closed his eyes...

*****

This must be a dream. Pup didn't remember waking up. This must be a dream, otherwise how could it be that if he tried hard enough he could grow? He could turn big, bigger than Spike, bigger than Duke. He could even turn bigger than his grandsire Maynard and he was the biggest dog ever! He could turn back to himself and just be Pup again. Too small, too young to go on Patrol alone. Young enough that their Guys didn't get in trouble when they got caught playing with him. Young enough that he could still sleep with his Binky and not be laughed at.

Sniff. Sniff sniff snuff.

Ah nuts. Nuts and squirrels. There was no sign of his Binky anywhere. He had to find his Binky. It's was a Need. He Needed his Binky.

Sniff sniff.

Wait...

Pup's sniffing brought him to the high school. Smelled like people, children. Like work. Like...

Pup ran up to one boy. He smelled different. He smelled like he Knew something. Someone who Knew how to help him get his Binky back! He went big, grabbed the boy by the ankle, and ran off with him.

Axion Labs were quiet when they got there, quiet save for the boy's screaming. Ffft. He shook the boy to get him to stop screaming already. There was bound to be a Patrol out. Pup could get them past the Patrol if only he could see who it was tonight...

That's odd. There were no signs of the Patrol. Where were they? Well then, if there was no Patrol then there was no reason to be sneaky. He dropped the boy and ran into the Labs, making sure the boy followed.

This wasn't a dream, this was a nightmare. There was no other reason for their Guys to run away from Pup in fear, regardless of how big he'd gotten. No reason for the Boss Guy to push a button that shot pain and scary lights from the ceiling. No reason for the net that Pup wished so hard would just go right through him and then it did!

The net was the last straw. His Need wasn't strong enough to overcome this. He'd find some other way to get his Binky back.

*****

Maybe trying to ask the Boss Guy for help wasn't such a good idea. The boy who Knew things kept showing up, which made sense because he did Know things. But then the boy would start trying to play with him and he'd have to wrestle and then things would get broken and the Boss Guy would get sad. That must be why the Boss Guy wasn't home anymore. So Pup started following the Boss Guy's puppy.

Then the Bad Guy showed up.

The Bad Guy was some girl in a weird suit with no face. She flew around on a big... flying thing. She had these guns that shot pain and she chased him around trying to shoot him. Pup didn't want to get shot so he'd run away. But then...

The Bad Guy started chasing the boy who Knew things! This stoked some new Need in Pup, a need to Protect. The boy was important, he Knew stuff, Pup wasn't going to let any Bad Guy hurt this boy! He grabbed the boy by the ankle and dragged him away from the Bad Guy, hid him from her. Once she was gone (and the boy stopped licking that one girl's face) he went small again and wiggled, expecting praise. He got it too, got picked up and petted as the boy took him to this strange place that looked like a lab but smelled like a mess. Pup sniffed around, confused, before the boy tossed him through the wall into a very strange place.

The sky swirled around everywhere in colors he never knew he could see. Strange. This whole place smelled like the boy did, like it was a place of Knowing. Maybe the place itself Knew stuff, maybe everyone from here Knew things, Pup wasn't sure. One thing he was sure about...

The longer he stayed here the stronger his Need became. He Needed to get back out there and find his Binky. He turned around and found he could fly through the swirly sky if he dug through the air. He dug right through the door in front of him and ended up back in that messy smelling lab. Time to keep looking for his Binky. He Needed it.

*****

Pup found himself in a big building full of people. They were all watching some boys play with a ball. Now **this** is something Pup understood. He watched the boys play with their ball for a little while before getting bored. He wanted to play ball too! He went big and tried to take the ball from the boys. Maybe they'd chase him!

Wait, why were they running away screaming? Right, this was a dream. Then the Bad Guy and the boy who Knew things showed up. Definitely a dream.

The boy took care of the Bad Guy and so Pup ignored them, instead sniffing under the bleachers. His Need was still strong, still itching at him like a flea behind his ears that he just couldn't reach...

"What is it, boy? You looking for something?"

Pup wagged his tail.

Then the boy said the magic word. "Fetch!" Pup was off as fast as his legs could carry him, jumping through walls and flying through the air. He would find his Binky, he had the boy who Knew stuff following him, and he could fly! This was the best dream ever!

As night fell Pup found himself outside the Labs tied to a tree. There were two people with him. They hid in the tree he was tied to. Only thieves hide in trees. Thieves and squirrels... He jumped up and barked at them, warning them not to try anything funny. A few barks was all it took and he sat at the base of the tree, glaring up at them. A low growl now and then were all that he needed to keep them in line until a Patrol...

Right. There were no Patrols in this dream. Pup was the only one left who could Patrol. He had to be extra vigilant, extra careful. He couldn't run off after squirrels anymore, he had to Protect the Labs.

Speaking of Labs, he heard crashing sounds from within. Someone had broken in! Pup pulled at the line that kept him tied to the tree but he was stuck. He snorted, snuffed, snarled, then **pulled**. The tree popped out of the ground and he ran for the building.

The line snapped as he went through the wall and saw the Bad Guy fighting the boy who Knew stuff. Pup growled and barked the Alarm. Still the fight continued so Pup tried to subdue the Bad Guy. All he had to do was get her in a Hold and then it would all be over.

The Bad Guy shot the boy and he disappeared, blown through a wall. Pup saw his chance. He tackled the Bad Guy and tossed her gun away. He stood over her and growled, keeping her in the Hold position just like he was taught. The boy who Knew things came back and tried to get his attention but it was unimportant. He was going to keep this Bad Guy here until his Guy came to praise him then cart the Bad Guy off.

Squeak. Squeaky squeak.

Pup looked up and his tail began to wag as the boy held his Binky! He was a Good Dog again! He'd kept a Bad Guy in Hold and protected the Labs all without being led around by one of their Guys or supervised by Spike or nothing! Not since Maynard had a dog taken down a Bad Guy like this and he'd done it alone!

The boy, not just a boy, but Pup's new Guy, held up his Binky and squeezed it before offering it to Pup as his reward for being a Good Dog.

Pup went small and bounded over to take the given Binky.

The Need was gone. The Bad Guy was captured. The Labs were saved. He was a Good Dog again.

He could wake up.

Pup opened his eyes...

.

* * *

.


	54. 11FTF Budding Friendship

******A/N: Just for all of you who happened to wonder how the penguin and Klemper became friends in "Gold Tested in Fire": there you go! And BTW, that last quote is the almost the entire last quote from the movie, Casablanca. I give full credit to the screenwriters of that 1942 movie: Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein, and Howard Koch.**

* * *

**Budding Friendship (100)  
**

A "Fanning the Flames" fanfiction drabble

By truephan

* * *

.

Klemper pulled his face out of the snow of this ghostly freezer and grunted. He then saw a small bird nearby and optimistically asked, "Will you be my friend?"

The ghost penguin squawked in protest and toddled away.

Kempler immediately got up and pulled out his pet goldfish from his pocket, which, of course, had died when he took it out of its fishbowl to give it a hug.

The penguin waddled back over, ate the fish, and hugged the hug ghost's leg in thanks.

Klemper grinned and chirped, "Chilly-Billy, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

.

* * *

**Livestream of Episode 12: Teacher of the Year at 7pm and 12am EST. /pieinthesky. Preshow is V for Vendetta.**


	55. 11FTF Updated

******Because the title needed to be  
**

* * *

**Updated  
**

A "Fanning the Flames" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

It turned out that Foley was right when he said the music wasn't coming from his blasted PDA. For once. The music streaming through the windows and drawing all of the students from out of their test preparations was coming from outside. From a traveling float that blasted the new singer's too-loud music, complete with live accompaniment and flaming aqua banners.

Not loud enough that it would drown him out when he had a megaphone, though. Thanks to his cheerleading days, he knew how to make himself heard. Also thanks to his more youthful escapades, however, the ever-present crick in his back meant that he would be out the door long after his students had escaped the dreaded captivity of Casper High.

He made it out in good time once he'd made a quick stop in the PA to pick up the amplifier and before long he was standing atop a fire hydrant in the school yard addressing the interruption in the day's schedule.

"Attention, freakishly dressed teen idol! I order you to cease and desist."

The rocker smirked, not appearing fazed at all. Without missing a beat, she replied, "Cease and desist this, grandpa!"

With a strum of her guitar, all eyes turned from her to him. Good. They were paying attention to him now. Perhaps he could persuade them all to just return to their classrooms and their Cramtastic Mach Fives.

But wait. The students weren't just looking at him. They were advancing. Steadily. They were menacing as they came, with their (red?!) eyes staring mindlessly.

He had seen plenty of crazy things in his time, but this was something different altogether. Never had he seen people transformed so instantly. Never had he been afraid of his students.

And suddenly, there was only one book title that seemed appropriate for the situation.

"Pride and Prejudice and Zombies!"

.

* * *

**I was wondering why Pride and Prejudice was appropriate for that scene, and then I realized why it was perfect. Even though I don't think the book had come out when this episode aired. Ah well, they were just getting ready for it. XD**


	56. 11FTF Golden

**********References to the old Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory movie. **  


* * *

**Golden  
**

A "Fanning the Flames" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

They gathered by the hundred. By the thousand.

Because they were called. Summoned.

The music told them to come. _She _wanted them there.

The advertisements and posters and banners and announcements put up all around town helped to enforce that decision as well.

So here they gathered, in front of the stage of their idol. The one they loved. The one they needed.

The singer who filled a void in their empty lives.

There she stood as they chanted her name, rapturous, glorious, full of promise.

Then she stretched out her hand and from them scattered a handful of papery shreds. Tiny, meaningless things, it would seem, except that everyone in the crowd would have killed to get their hands on one of them.

One blond boy in the front stood tall, flaunting his catch, his prized possession for all to see.

"I've got a golden ticket!"

He didn't have anyone to tell him not to stop until he'd run home.

.

* * *

**Because they were golden tickets.**


	57. 11FTF Remember My Name

**Ha. I was actually going for poetry on this one. Instead I get 100 word drabbles mirrored with lines from the show. XD**

**Rated for character death and suggestions of... *cough*  
**

* * *

**Remember My Name  
**

A "Fanning the Flames" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

"Ma'am," the officer began. "I have to ask you some questions, you understand?"

The woman nodded and sniffled into a tissue.

"Please tell me about your daughter."

"Well, Amber is a beautiful girl. She's kind and gets along well with everyone. Her friends, classmates, brother."

"I wish my daughter was the same," the detective muttered as he jotted down notes. "No problems with parental control or authority?"

"No… not until recently. We were all a very close family, went places, did things together. Our rules weren't hard and we rarely had to do any actual enforcing."

"Until recently, you said?"

.:.

_You ready for a youth revolution?_

.:.

"It started when she got into this rock phase. She'd always wanted to sing and constantly brought home new music. She went through fads. But this one was different."

"How so?"

"She dressed differently, acted differently, started hanging out with different people. Suddenly, she needed to fit into that crowd and act like they did. And then, of course, our house rules were too hard and she started fighting or ignoring everything we said."

"Sounds like a normal teenage thing to me."

"Not Amber, detective. She still loved us, but she was looking for approval in all the wrong places."

.:.

_That's because I fill a void in your empty lives._

.:.

"We didn't like the kids she hung out with. They were punks. And they made her do things she normally wouldn't do. But she was still our little girl. And she loved us. She would never run away!" the woman exclaimed. "You're going to find her and bring her back to us, aren't you?"

"Yes, ma'am. Now is there anyone who could convince her to 'get away from it all' for a week?"

"She would have called."

"Were there… any guys in her life?

She started. "You think…? Well, umm, I don't know, but there might have been one guy…"

.:.

_Aww teen love. They say it never lasts. But nothing distracts teenagers more than hormones._

.:.

Hundreds of miles away, a girl dropped her suitcase and flopped onto the bed. "This is an awesome place you have."

"Yeah, nobody comes here anymore, so it's my own secret hideaway."

"You mean _our _secret hideaway?" she giggled.

"Yeah, baby," he placated as he leaned against the doorway. "Ours."

She pouted. "All of the other girls are "baby." Come on, say my name."

He didn't answer until he'd pinned her beneath him on the bed so he could whisper it in her ear.

"That's it," she murmured between kisses before moving across the now crumpled sheets. "Say my name."

.:.

_Tell me who you love._

.:.

Two officers stepped under the tape. "So what do we have?"

"Girl, eighteen or nineteen."

"Any ID?"

"Nothing yet. Pop singer wanna-be, if we go by the notebooks filled with half-baked lyrics. 'You will remember my name.'"

"Love songs?"

"Possibly for the guy she was with."

"Hmm. Didn't deserve it if he loved her enough to kill her like that."

They stared at the girl on the bed in silence for a moment. No matter how many they saw, it never got easier. Even when they didn't know her name.

"I think… there's a missing persons report out on her…"

.:.

_Say my name._

.:.

* * *

**Yeah, yeah, I know. Major playing around with fanon here. I just wanted to write something other than a house fire. :P And it seemed that most of her lines in this show meant something to her backstory... this is how I was able to fit together those puzzle pieces.  
**


	58. 12TOTY ripoffexe

**Inspired by some of the stuff we were talking about during the livestream.**

* * *

**ripoff . exe**

A "Teacher of the Year" fanfiction

By Phantom Lightning

* * *

.

"...Hey, Tucker?" Danny said as they played Doom together at the internet cafe.

"Not now, Danny! We almost have the last key!" Tucker said, making his character jump over a ninja and fire an energy blast out of his hands.

"Yeah, that's what I was going to ask you about."

"What? I want access to the world wide web, don't you?" Tucker said, blasting aside another player as he snuck up on Danny's avatar.

"That's the problem."

"What?! What do you mean?" Tucker said momentarily shocked and forgetting to move his character aside, killing a monster at the last moment.

"Remember the day we installed Doom?"

"Yeah, we were really excited, although it took three hours to install."

"And we were on our home computers, right?"

"Dude, is there a reason why you're asking we this?" Tucker said, not knowing where Danny was going with the conversation.

"Yeah... it was, quote, "The greatest free multiplayer online game of the year", right?" Danny said, jumping over a mutant spider that decided to attack him.

"And your point is...?"

"If we did all that, and there are other players on this server, then don't we already have access to the internet?"

"..."

"Well, that explains why it was free, right?" Danny said shrugging and unlocking the door with the last key.

Nothing happened.

"Told you it was a rip off." Danny said to Tucker as he moaned and cried about his life no longer having a meaning and how everything he knew was a lie.

.

* * *

**No, seriously. Wouldn't they already have access to it? Or am I just not understanding what they mean?**


	59. 12TOTY Once Again

**During "Teacher of the Year". The final battle between Technus and the trio had at least one observer. One doesn't become the Supreme Lord of the Apocalypse through simple luck.**

* * *

**Once Again...  
**

A "Teacher of the Year" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

Once Again...

The broken, battered digital landscape stretched around him. The battlefield laid strewn with the markers of a hundred fragged players, the discarded and dropped loot of a thousand digital enemies. He hid out behind the collapsed wall of a blown out building, checking the powerpacks on his pistols.

Ahead was his goal, the final Key. Ahead was a fierce battle. Three players were ganging up on one, one who sounded like they were close to the very same goal he sought. He pulled down his sniper rifle and peered through the scope...

Heh. Chaos. He contemplated just squeezing off a few shots and taking out Chaos. It would jump his ranking far enough that not even Big Kahuna could catch up to him. Speaking of... He watched as Chaos grabbed the idol and activated the Big Kahuna cheat. Chaos jumped in and Kahuna began to move, growing arms and legs, picking itself up off the battlefield. He wiggled underneath the overhanging debris into the sniper's nest he knew was here. Okay...

So Chaos was now Big Kahuna. That... would present difficulties. FryerTuck was not exactly known for his skill. Bad attempts at quips but not skill. GhostBoy looked different than normal. Maybe it was a new character skin. Seemed more competent than normal, too. This... Hmm... This Technus was the username of their mutual enemy.

Their mutual enemy who used slang even he knew was outdated. Ugh. 'Whippersnapper'? His **dad**used to talk like that. He holstered his sniper rifle and slid out from underneath his cover. A leap led to a vault over the edge and a slide down the sloped incline of the debris. A jump at the last minute meant avoiding ending up in a crumpled fragged heap at the base, instead flying off to the next high point for another look.

Heh. The secret to his success. He never used the jetpacks that were so beloved by the majority of the players. They were too loud, too flashy, too easy to rely on, too easy to target. No one ever knew he was coming...

With Big Kahuna active this Technus was getting his ass handed to him. Excellent. Another quiet jump and a slide out of the debris field onto the clearing around the final gate. They didn't look. And why would they, he made no sound to give himself away. His weapons were unpowered so he didn't show up on their HUDs. He snuck up behind them, using that maxed out stealth skill as they tossed Technus into level zero. As they held up the final key. They were just about to put it into the gate...

He smirked. He could almost hear their confusion as suddenly their HUDs blared to life the moment before they were fragged. One shot each into GhostBoy and FryerTuck. Two for good measure into the back of Big Kahuna's big wooden head.

The field was quiet as their pixels faded. He smirked into the destruction as he held up the final key. "Once again!" he cried to the empty battlefield, the empty classroom. "I, Mr. Lancer, am victorious!"

Only then did he realize how he might look. Not if anyone in the game found him but what if someone here at Casper High happened to find him? Rumor had it Tetslaff was prowling the school halls again looking for the thief who stole her lunch. He ignored the sandwich wrapper in the trash can, the one he'd stolen from the paper bag with her name on it. If he just stayed in here and played a little longer then maybe she'd give up and go home.

Lancer put in the final key and hummed as the game gave its little victory theme music and unlocked the next level of rewards. Heh. If only the other players knew that the "World Wide Web" was merely an invitation to betatest the next expansion of Doomed.

.

* * *

**Livestream of episode 13 tonight on livestream/pieinthesky at 7pm and 12am EST. ****Beetlejuice p****reshow.**

**Also, NebulousMistress challenges everyone to write a Lancer based fic for _Teacher of the Year_ this week and we're getting ready for our second contest over at the DA group (through-dp . deviantart)! Exciting stuff.  
**


	60. 10SOG Human Resources

**.**

* * *

**Human Resources  
**

A "Shades of Gray" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Vladimir Masters sighed as he reviewed the personnel files. The last candidate had also been from this pool of highly recommended body guards. What a fiasco that had been. In the end he had to personally chase him down when the man refused to follow orders. It was even worse than to one before who, for all his tough guy-attitude, turned out to be superstitiously fearful of ghosts. Then there had been the one who had tried to black mail him. Well, let's just say it is inadvisable to threaten to expose the morally dubious research of someone with dubious morals.

He needed someone who he could control and manipulate, someone who wouldn't get greedy or sue; someone who would be just as motivated for revenge as he was.

He flipped the page. There was the personnel file of the head of security to the newly acquired Axiom Labs. The man was on probation as he served as the night security. Masters had approved Gray's new security system mostly because it meant that fewer people and less of a chance of security leaks.

There had been some sort of problem so why wasn't the guy fired already? The administrator had been way too soft. He was about to toss it aside when in noticed a notation about ghosts. Bending over he read the file more carefully.

Gray had reported that the break in had been caused by ghosts but there had been nothing about ghosts in the incident report. Vlad began to reconsider his original impulse to have the man fired when he realized that Damon Gray's supervisor had attempted to cover it up, but Gray had been insistent that supplementary report be included with the true version of events. He was even more impressed when he found the report contained a thorough analysis of the security system's faults. But what sold him was the conclusion that included suggestions for anti-ghost upgrades in lieu of the whining excuses found in the supervisor's report.

Something pinged in Vlad's memory as he looked at the man's file. Too bad the man did not meet the physical requirements. He typed in a code into the prompt box. Ahh; there it was. The more detailed report included the background check on his family including his wife, Evelyn and daughter, Valery.

His wife was a ninth degree black belt and met the physical requirements. Then he caught the note on the bottom: deceased. Well so much for that idea. He was about to close the folder when he noticed a tab.

He clicked on it and studied the new page with speculation. The daughter had martial arts training. She was underage but, considering his previous candidates, that might not mean disqualification if one was willing to 'think outside the box". In fact, it might be an advantage. Her younger body might be more adaptable to the technology and she'd be less likely to ask awkward questions in her compromised position. He reached for his phone.

.

* * *

**No livestream this week, but you can watch Episode 14: Public Enemies on your own on DVDs, Amazon, iTunes, Netflix, goodanime, gogoanime, and perhaps Nick's website.**


	61. 11FTF Study Aids

**Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or Star Wars**

* * *

**Study Aids  
**

A "Fanning the Flames" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

"Please," Danny begged, "if I don't ace my midterms, I'm sunk."

Tucker sighed heavily. "You need to have a CD like the one the county provided for the Northwestern Nine."

"We could burn our own disc," Danny encouraged.

"We'd have to program in all our notes and text books. It'd take all week and we spend all our time hunting ghosts."

"I'll handle patrol." Danny dropped to his knees and clasped his hands. "You're my only hope!"

Tucker looked at Sam and exhaled. "Ok, Princess Leia, keep you buns on. You handle the ghosts; we'll handle the evil exam empire."

.

.

Danny knew that ghost hunting was easier as a team but that point was brought forcefully home.

Without their help, ghost fights took longer; the longer they took, the more energy it cost him; the more exhausted he was, the harder it was to fight; which meant more injuries; which slowed him down and it took longer to catch ghosts….it was a vicious cycle.

It was embarrassing to admit it but there was also the loneliness factor. He found himself flying another loop on patrol just to see the light in window where his friends were burning the midnight oil.

.

.

"How's it going?" Danny asked as he dropped his lunch onto the table where his friends were pouring over textbooks.

"My fingers are practically bleeding from typing so much," complained Tucker.

"This is the last. We should have it ready by the time you finish patrol." Sam rubbed her bloodshot eyes, "How about you?"

Danny was afraid that if he answered truthfully, they would insist on going ghost hunting instead of working on the study disc.

"I'm fine." Danny answered and tried to push himself up straighter in his chair.

Sam squinted at him suspiciously. "This better be worth it."

.

.

They were all looking a bit ragged Friday night as snuck back into the school building.

Tucker pulled off the cover of the Cramtastic Mark Five with a shudder, "It's creepy how it shoves stuff into your brain. I was glad when it wore off and I stopped spouting random facts."

"I didn't hear you complaining about your perfect score," groused Sam

Danny sat and strapped on the helmet while Sam and Tucker helped wire him in.

"I couldn't sleep well for days afterwards. If it was such a great thing, why isn't it being used for all our classes?"

.

.

Lancer was making his typically sarcastic comments as he handed out the papers.

Danny looked over at Sam and Tucker. They gave him sympathetic looks but couldn't help the grins that spread on their faces as they turned their papers over and saw their scores.

Danny forced himself to smile back; they deserved it after all. It was natural they would do well after the monumental effort that went into preparing the disk.

Danny looked at his grade and winced. The subliminals wore off pretty quickly. By the time he took the test on Monday afternoon, he didn't remember anything.

.

* * *

**(Guest- sorry you think this "story" has too many chapters; it's doesn't follow a single plot but is a oneshot collection from different authors in the fandom and it's just going to keep getting longer from here.)**


	62. 12TOTY Reassessment

**.**

* * *

**Reassessment  
**

A "Teacher of the Year" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

As a teacher, he could only procrastinate so far. So after blowing off the whole of Friday night playing Doomed until the wee hours of the morning, Lancer devoted Saturday afternoon to work on grading a stack of essays. Flush from his victory he hummed to himself as he entered the office in a cheerful mood.

That is when he found Fenton slumped over the desk wearing the Cramaster headset. He placed a hand on the boy's shoulder.

He mumbled something about the Monroe Document without opening his eyes.

"Man With Out a Country! What are you doing here Fenton?" the teacher exclaimed.,

The boy opened his eyes and stared at him dazedly.

"Are you alright?" Lancer asked in alarm as he hastily removed the helmet.

He sighed in relief when the student blinked and seemed to become aware of his environment.

"Mr. Lancer!" Danny jumped up and nearly overbalanced.

The teacher caught his shoulder and steadied him. "What are you doing here?" he repeated.

Fenton tried to hoist a smile onto his face. "Studying for your test?"

"How long have you been here?"

Danny tried to come up with an answer but random bits of information and calculations kept derailing his thoughts. "Uh…What day is it?"

"20,000 Leagues Under the Sea!" Lancer swore and he pressed Danny back into the chair. "It's Saturday afternoon. Does anybody know you're here?"

"Jules Verne wrote 20,000 Leagues under the Sea in 1870. Verne is credited with prophetic use of technology including the military use of submarines which had not yet been built in his time. The book also serves as a political commentary against oppressive govern…"

Lancer gave Danny's shoulder a shake.

Danny blinked at him owlishly and then said slowly. "Sam and Tucker were supposed to come and unplug me this morning." He hoped nothing happened.

"Mr. Foley and Ms. Manson are involved with this scheme?"

Danny nodded, "I asked them to help me. They made the disc." He waved vaguely at the machine.

"That explains why your friends had their noses in their books all week. If you were so interested in improving your grades, why weren't you hitting the books?"

Danny pushed aside the information on Tycho Brahe's supposedly gold nose that popped into his head as he answered Lancer's question. "I've been busy hitting…" Danny caught himself just in time, "….I've been busy with other stuff."

Lancer looked the boy's exhausted appearance with a critical eye. Up close he could see the greens and yellows of fading bruises and scabbed elbows that looked road-rashed. Just what had the boy been up to?

Lancer asked softly, "Busy doing what? Is there anything you'd like to tell me?"

For a moment Danny looked like a deer caught in the headlights but he quickly covered it with a scowling expression.

"Nothing to tell. Can I go now?" Danny asked causally. He was anxious to go check on Sam and Tucker.

"Considering you shouldn't have been here in the first place: yes. Go home. Get some real sleep and if you really want to pass your classes there's nothing like actually doing the reading and homework assignments."

Danny shouldered his backpack and headed for the door. At the threshold, he hesitated "Am I in trouble?"

"I'm not inclined to punish you for studying. But learning it is something you have to do for yourself. No one, not even your friends, can do it for you."

Lancer escorted Fenton out the front door and stood contemplating the teen as he watched him jog down the street.

At the start of the school year he had seen potential in the boy. After the first few weeks he began to reassess his conclusion thinking that he had been mislead by the stellar student his sister was. Judging by the boy's distracted, disinterested, and increasingly dismal performance in school, he reluctantly came to the conclusion that the youngest Fenton was content to be one of those statistics who was determined to slip through the cracks in the American educational system.

Now as he watched the boy's retreating back, he was thinking that he had made a grave error. Maybe there was more going on here than met the eye. He'd have to keep a better eye on the kid. He had thought the boy didn't care if he failed but that hardly fit the profile of a kid that would sneak into school after hours to study.

If Fenton did care about his grades, then all was not lost. Maybe all he needed was some extra help afterschool. Make him reorder his priorities. The boy's parents seemed supportive; maybe a home visit would do some good. Lancer resolved to do whatever it took.

After all if his student wasn't going to give up, how could he?

.


	63. 12TOTY Figwit

Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom

When I watched the episode, I noticed at the very beginning that Tucker calls Chaos "Figwit" right before he fails to frag him. It rang a bell with something my daughter in law said so I looked it up.

Figwit is a fan-created name for an unnamed elf extra in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings film trilogy. The name is credited to Iris Hadad and is made from an acronym of "Frodo is Great…Who Is That?!"

Figwit has been very popular with fans. McKenzie, who played the character said "It's so hilarious because it's been propelled by so little….I'm famous for doing nothing."

I guess I decided to join the bandwagon and cheer for the underdog that unknown extra that stands in the background being part of the scenery for all of three seconds.

* * *

**Figwit  
**

A "Teacher of the Year" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Sam's disgust was evident in her voice. "Seriously, I can't believe you guys. The Fenton Helmet? I thought after the Cramaster incident you'd both had enough of mind altering head gear."

"Ordinarily, I'd agree with you. But if it gives us an edge in Doomed, it's worth the risk," Danny justified.

Sam shrugged, "What's so great about Doomed? It's just a video game."

Tucker gasped in disbelief, "Sacrilage!"

Danny put a hand on Tucker's shoulder and tried to explain to Sam, "It's a guy thing; you wouldn't understand."

Sam rolled her eyes. "Of course, that explains why you'd risk frying your brain. There are so few working cells left it doesn't really matter.

"Relax, I tested it on Jazz first." Danny reassured her.

"Uh, just asking, did Jazz have any adverse effects?" Tucker asked curiously.

"Nope. Of course she only lasted three seconds." Danny admitted.

"Works for me," Tucker chirped.

.

* * *

**Livestream of Ep 14: Public Enemies and 15: Fright Night tonight at 7 pm and 12 am EST with an Invader Zim preshow. livestream /pieinthesky**


	64. 1313 Overprotective

Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom

They may have gotten older but Danny still overprotective when it comes to his sister dating.

* * *

**Overprotective  
**

A "13" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Her boyfriend smiled warmly and gave Jazz a reassuring hug. "I've been looking forward to meeting your family."

"I did warn you they're sort of nuts, didn't I?" Jazz asked hesitantly.

"Many times."

"And that they are the quintessential eccentric scientists?"

"Ghost hunting isn't considered so crazy anymore."

"They do more inventing than hunting these days."

"And that they are overprotective of their precious daughter."

"Especially, my brother. He had better not be spying on us!" She addressed that last comment to the empty air.

"Come on, he can't be that bad."

"Let's just say he has a track record."

.

.

"Danny, we have to talk." Jazz's voice make it a command rather than an invitation.

Danny cringed as he followed his sister into his bedroom, shutting the door behind them.

"I apologized," he offered meekly, "and offered to replace his clothing. And first aid."

Her glare said that it was going to take more than that.

"I can't help it," he said contritely, "I protect: my family, my loved ones, my town, even the world on occasion. It's what I do!"

"I know all about your ghost half's obsession," his sister snapped, "but there's such a thing as being overprotective!"

.

* * *

.


	65. 1313 Always

After "13". Johnny failed once. He wasn't going to fail again. He would bring her back. Always.

Rated T

* * *

**Always  
**

A "13" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

Johnny walked down the corridor, his hands in his pockets, trying to look like he belonged here. It wasn't easy. After all, how many hospitals considered it normal for a long haired punk in wife-beater and trench coat to prowl their halls? Still, invisibility went a long way when security looked particularly suspicious.

This place came with some glowing recommendations. It still made Johnny feel weird to have to negotiate with some of the stranger denizens of the Ghost Zone. But then they would know where to look for what he needed.

Ah, here it was. The coma wing. He passed by body after body. Too old, too fat, too young, too grandma, too male... Kitty was quite particular about what bodies she used. Johnny wore her ring even though it barely fit over his littlest finger. He wanted her to see through his eyes and besides, it made him feel close to her despite the dimensional divide.

_Wait, what about that one?_

Johnny looked down at where his mind was gesturing. Hmm. He picked up her chart and looked for anything he might be able to decipher. Sixteen, attempted suicide. She hung herself. He looked her over, taking careful stock. Long brown hair, nice figure, tall, lean. A big nose but he could overlook that. A little young but, hey, if Kitty was down then he wouldn't be picky.

She had a family: parents, brothers, grandparents. He didn't particularly care. She'd do. He pulled out the various tubes, wires, needles. Alarms started going off, squealing at the loss of their patient. He hoisted her in his arms and ran just as a team of nurses came running.

Heh. They'd never catch him. "Shadow! Defend!" he commanded.

He smirked as he heard the shatter and screams behind him. He kicked off the floor and flew out of the hospital as his Shadow's carnage followed.

Johnny rode up to the cemetary, phasing through the padlocked gates. He left his bike at the base of a hill and hoisted the girl in his arms. He needed to act fast; her heartbeat was slowing down. He needed to get this over with soon, before she died. He laid her on the dark grass, the dew of night soaking into her hospital gown. Johnny kissed the girl's still lips. "Soon, Kitten," he promised.

First the scarf. The fuzzy purple scarf, the last reminder of the family she left behind. Parents disappointed in her choices, an understanding aunt who died early, knitting this scarf in her final days. He could see the glow begin to overtake the girl, could see her breathing grow stronger.

Next the jacket. Red leather. He remembered how they got it, breaking into the store in the dead of night because they two were eloping and she needed something to protect her from the cold as she clung to him on the back of his motorcycle. The girl's skin grew pale, a healthy pale like Kitty's green-white skin. She had freckles in the most interesting of places. Once they were as red as her hair.

Finally the ring. Cheap brass fitted with a big opal. Probably a fake opal at that. Johnny had told her he wanted to turn over a new leaf, that he wanted to be a good man. She made him that good man. It was the best he could afford yet he was still ashamed when he presented it as her wedding ring. It made him love her all the more when she kissed him so hard and told him it was the most beautiful ring she'd ever seen. That she'd be honored to wear it wherever they went.

Johnny 13 thought back on their wedding night. Pounding on the door of a justice of the peace around 3am and getting possibly **the**most sullen, annoyed ceremony possible in return. Running down the steps hand in hand. He picked her up and put her astride his motorcycle before mounting it himself and riding off into the night. It was supposed to be the first day of their lives, not their last. The truck came out of nowhere.

He still didn't remember much. Not even the pain. He just remembered reaching for her as she reached out for him. Then...

It didn't matter now. Now he watched as the girl's body wracked with movement, as his beloved Kitty overtook this body and made it her own.

Cruelest fate made him a ghost. But she was trapped somewhere in between, always needing a body to possess lest she fade away.

Red eyes opened in a new face, a new body. "Hey," she said.

"Hey yourself," Johnny said.

She pulled him down to the ground and they kissed. No matter what she looked like, no matter who she became, no matter the distance between them, he would always love her. He would always bring her back.

.

* * *

.


	66. 10SOG Crush

**I don't apologize for any of this. *grins madly*  
**

* * *

**Crush  
**

A "Shades of Gray" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

"Right," Paulina said, "you were totally hanging out with that loser Foley last week, weren't you? Please tell me that isn't a thing. Because that would just be… eww."

"No, that wasn't really anything," Valerie countered, playing the whole thing down.

"But you even agreed to go with him to the dance!"

"Only because Kwan dumped me!" Valerie snapped, defences running in high gear.

"But that's twice. And you agreed both times. That means something's going on. And I was thinking of letting you back into the A-listers, but if this is going to be a thing, there's no way you can come back," Paulina told her.

"It's fine, guys. There's nothing going on with Foley. I certainly don't have a crush on him."

"That sounded like you have a crush on someone else," Star remarked.

Paulina pounced on the observation. "Yes it does. Tell us who it is."

"Guys, I don't have a crush on anyone."

But the blush gracing her darkening cheeks gave her away entirely.

"Who is it?" Star asked excitedly.

"I'm not going to tell you."

"If it's someone cool enough I might be able to make something happen. As long as you ditch the loser crowd," Paulina offered.

"Like I said," Valerie spelled out for them, "I'm not going to tell you."

"Oh my gosh, is it someone super awesome?" Star gushed. "Is it someone in this room? Is that why you can't tell us?" She half rose out of her seat to look around until Valerie pushed her back down with a harsh whisper, "No, it's not someone in the room and stop making a fool of yourself. You're going to get us in trouble for talking."

"Oh, sorry," she demurred.

"But really, Val," Paulina took up, "who is this guy? What's he like to have you all fascinated like this? I don't remember you ever having a crush before…"

"Yeah, how did you meet?" Star asked, leaning closer.

"Well," Valerie tried to come up with something that would placate them without saying too much. "We both like hunting."

"With guns?" Star gasped.

"Yeah."

"Have you gone out on a date?"

"No, we haven't dated or anything like that, but…"

"But…?" Star caught. "There's something between you, isn't there?"

"Yeah, sort of."

"Oh my gosh, has he given you presents?"

"A couple. He sent a box to my house and even left something for me at school."

"Does he go here?"

"No, he's not a student."

"Oh gosh," Star said with a hand covering her mouth. "Is it a teacher?"

"What? No! No, he doesn't go to the school at all. You guys don't know him. But he's really awesome. He's so amazing and he knows exactly what I like." She stopped to look at Star's enraptured face before faltering a bit on this next part. "Like… he got me a new outfit and it fits perfectly and is just the most comfortable thing ever. It's just what I wanted and he even got... all of the accessories to go with it."

"So dreamy," Star murmured.

"So do we get to see this awesome outfit, chica?" Paulina asked, eyebrows raised.

"Um, no, it's not normal clothes; it would be for like a shooting range. It's red so that everyone else can see you and won't accidentally shoot you. But it's really comfy and stylish and it can last through anything, I'm pretty sure."

"So, he's a pretty decent guy if he buys you clothes when you aren't even dating."

"Well, I hope that it will get to that point soon. I don't really have a chance to meet up with him that often, though. We just kinda miss each other."

"It's like forbidden love!" Star said, her eyes all misted over.

"Really, Star, it isn't anything like that. We're really good together. We're like a team. We work well and think the same way about a lot of things. About a lot of things that most people don't even really think about. But he's the most thoughtful guy ever and he really cares about me and the people I love and the town and making the world a better place. And he's just so cool and he never asks for anything in return and helps me to be a better person and achieve my goals and…"

"And you're rambling. Wow, you got it bad."

Valerie looked down at her lap and fiddled with her hair when she realized that Paulina was right about the rambling bit. Maybe she had gone a bit overboard with describing a guy she hadn't actually technically met yet.

"So what's his name?" Star asked with a bright smile.

"Oh," Valerie laughed a bit. "His name… it's um… he likes to go by Vlad."

Before either girl had a chance to respond, the entire class was interrupted when Manson began to gag violently and stumble blindly toward the door in search of a bathroom.

"Ewww," Paulina remarked casually, turning her attention to her perfectly sparkled nails. "That is so gross."

.

* * *

**Aha. *wipes tear* I really want to rework this to be a full fledged oneshot, so if anyone has input, now's the time to tell me. C:  
**


	67. 14PE Page Five

**.  
**

* * *

**Page Five  
**

A "Public Enemies" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

Of all the newspapers that graced his breakfast table there was one that he held in the highest esteem. It was an embarrassing secret, one that would leave him the laughing stock of the trashy supermarket tabloids. Well, most of them anyway. One at least would be flattered, overjoyed, ecstatic, and probably demand an interview.

Yes, the _Weekly World News_ was Vlad's favorite newspaper. Sure it was a joke, a farcical mocking of the real news, favoring stories about dinosaurs of mass destruction rather than the more socially acceptable pictures of fat celebrity butts. Of course most of the stories were invented drivel by bored fiction writers. Vlad justified his favor by telling himself that occasionally the paper would report on real events of the supernatural variety: ectostorms, monster sightings, hauntings, the mystery of how the VladCo building tended to attract every lightning storm within fifty miles... Vlad told himself that he read this to see how close the observant members of the human race were to figuring out the secret of half-ghosts.

That's what he told himself, anyway. It in no way explained why the first thing he did upon getting his copy every week was flip to the back to check on the antics of Batboy.

"Ahem," coughed a quiet, dignified voice.

Vlad looked up from his precious tabloid to see the butler standing there with his breakfast. He lifted the paper off the table and let the man put down his mushroom and cheese omelet, sugared blackberries, mimosa, and coffee.

Vlad flipped through his paper looking for something interesting. He found the usual. The cover story was about some photoshopped woman who claimed to be the offspring of a bunch of hippies and a marijuana plant. Something about birds being used by drug cartels as lookouts. A blurb about a ghost invasion in Amity Park. Some mysterious book that drove everyone who read it insane.

Wait, what?

Vlad turned back to the story on Amity Park. There were pictures, too. He stared at one of them, torn between laughing hysterically and shaking his head in dismay. Suddenly he wasn't hungry anymore. Rather he felt quite ill. He picked up his mimosa and downed the contents, needing the kick of champagne to dull his growing dread.

Danny Phantom had made page five of the _Weekly World News_.

.

* * *

**Livestream of Ep 16: Maternal Instincts at 7pm and 12am EST livestream/pieinthesky. Preshow is Young Frankenstein.  
**


	68. 16MI Regrets

**.  
**

* * *

**Regrets  
**

A "Maternal Instincts" fanfiction

By truephan

* * *

.

"Wha-hoo!"

"Alright!"

"Too easy!" she said.

"Anytime, Mom!" Danny finally replied with a mixture of exasperation and embarrassment.

"Sure, sweetie. Just one more second, okay?" she asked enthusiastically.

He sighed. Maybe this mother/son bonding time they had at Vlad's mountain chalet wasn't a good thing after all. Ever since then, his mom had been helping him _too much_. Like cleaning his room and finding his long-lost video game—which she insisted on having him show her how to play. Which he did.

He winced at the next set of excited bells and whistles.

Yep. Regrets. She was definitely beating him.

.

* * *

**.  
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	69. 15FN Competition

**There had to have been something more going on between Lancer and Tetslaff, both during and in the years leading up to this episode. I honestly think this explains it all.**

* * *

**Competition  
**

A "Fright Night" fanfiction

By PuppetMaster55

* * *

.

Elijah Lancer stomped through the halls of Casper High, his anger a foul taste in the air that sent students fleeing in droves. Those that didn't have a classroom or corner to dive towards jumped into open lockers with varied results. Lancer took dark amusement from the scrawnier members of the student body sliding into their lockers with well-practiced ease, while the more bulky students got stuck partway through and had taken to flailing wildly as he passed them by.

The source of his intense ire was simple: after so long, Lancer had finally won the coin toss against Tetslaff over which of them would handle the year's haunted house. He had won after three long years of Tetslaff winning, and was drawing a complete blank on what to do.

None of the other faculty members ever pretended to understand how Lancer's rivalry with Tetslaff worked, nor were they curious to find out how it began. If they were to ask either combatant, radically different answers would be given, Lancer knew. He both knew and understood Tetslaff's ideology (the big, tough jock always wins over the bookish), but he firmly believed that strength was earned through hardship. It was what had compelled Lancer to gymnastics in the first place in his high school days, and where his rivalry with Tetslaff had hit new heights. For the rest of high school the two had done their best to one-up one another, crafting ever more complex and dangerous stunts until their early college days, when Lancer had miscalculated and ended up in the hospital with fractures in both the hip and spine.

Since then, it had been a subtle war of attrition, using different avenues to one-up each other while Lancer changed his major to English Literature, from Lancer winning the online Doomed game (getting to beta-test the game's global expansion pack had sent Tetslaff seething for several weeks while he gloated) to Casper High's haunted house.

...and he had nothing. Not a single idea or inkling of what theme to do for his haunted house.

The lack of inspiration had sent him on a warpath across the school, hoping to come across any idiot student to take his intense rage out on. There was a splash and the cry of a student from around the corner, and Lancer's sudden smile was toothier than a shark's.

He rounded the corner to see a pair of students in a scuffle, one coated in paint while the other–

_The Hounds of Zaroff..._ Lancer's smile vanished.

Danny Fenton and Dash Baxter. Their conflicts were common knowledge among the faculty, and largely ignored since there always was a pair of students who were so openly hostile towards one another in each of the class years. Fenton and Baxter just happened to be this freshman year's pair.

.

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**Episode 17: Lucky In Love tonight at 7pm and midnight EST. livestream /pieinthesky  
**


	70. 12TOTY Chaos

**.  
**

* * *

**Chaos  
**

A "Teacher of the Year" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

School came far too early. After his nightlong Doom playing spree, it wasn't even worth it to try to sleep for an hour. He had time to get a few worksheets done, but by the time to made it to Casper High, he looked ready to fall down.

"Man," Tucker exclaimed as soon as he saw Danny coming up to the front doors. "You look beat. Heh. In more ways than one."

"Oh shut it, Tuck," Danny muttered, too tired to put much heat into it.

"You okay?" Sam asked.

He flicked dark rimmed eyes up to her. "Yeah, sure, I'm fine. Just stayed up all night to play video games.

"Oh, is that all?" she asked with eyebrows quirked.

"Yeah. Not that you would understand."

"Because I'm a girl?"

"No because you're a Goth. You're used to staying up all night and not feeling the effects. You are a creature of the dark, right?" he asked putting up his hands into a traditional vampire stance.

She chuckled a bit. "Yeah, but weren't you playing with Tucker? He looks like he'll survive first period."

"He's a techno geek," Danny returned. "He has special abilities to protect him from all nighters."

"I sure do!" Tucker beamed. "I just wish I had abilities to make me beat Chaos into the ground."

One of Sam's eyebrows rose into a high arch.

Danny saw and told her that she wouldn't know who Chaos was. Just another player in Doomed.

"Chaos," Tucker repeated. "The International Organization of Evil."

Both of his friends stared at him blankly, wondering if the sleepless night had taken more of a toll on him than they had previously thought.

"What? Have you guys never seen Get Smart?"

They shook their heads wordlessly.

His mouth gaped open, clearly about to start ranting about how on earth they had not seen the show or the movie when the bell rang.

They ran.

.

* * *

**I couldn't get this out of my head throughout the episode. "Chaos: The International Organization of Evil" in that crazy Maxwell Smart voice of his. XD  
**


	71. 12TOTY Rosebud!

**.  
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* * *

**Rosebud!;  
**

A "Teacher of the Year" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

Sam grinned as both boys stared at her in shock. They'd been friends forever and yet hadn't ever thought to include her in their talk of gaming. Didn't think she'd be interested, let alone be the player that they spent so many late night sessions griping about.

And just when they started accepting that bombshell, she dropped another one.

"Of course, I know all the cheat codes and stuff. You guys must know them too, right?" she asked, knowing perfectly well that from the level at which they played, they didn't even know the cheats existed.

"Oh, that's funny," Sam continued. "All the girls do. Maybe you should communicate more."

Spinning the basketball on her finger one last time, she casually tossed it over her shoulder and into the basket.

Her two best friends stared after her in shock as she calmly walked out of the gym.

.

As soon as he got home, Tucker used some of his own personal skills to check the player profiles of everyone he and Danny had singled out as players with talent.

Somehow, it still shocked him to find that all but one (yet another player whose home town was listed as Amity Park- what were the odds?) were girls.

"Yeah," Danny hesitantly acknowledged, still not feeling comfortable with handing the role of expert gamers to the girls, "but you do realize that they were all playing with cheat codes. That doesn't really count. I mean, we were playing with our own pure skills, which means that we're still the superior players."

"Ah ah ah," Tucker shook his finger. "You were playing with your ghost powers. You said yourself, it's the ultimate cheat code. I am the superior player here, thank you very much." He tossed his head back and sniffed.

It took a moment for them to realize the full irony of the situation, but then both boys began laughing so hard that tears streamed out of their eyes.

.

* * *

**Kudos if you understand the title. XP  
**


	72. 12TOTY Never Asked

**Because NebulousMistress said we should all write more Lancer.  
**

* * *

**Never Asked  
**

A "Teacher of the Year" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

For all that William Lancer played an instrumental role in the lives of every young person to walk through the halls of Casper High, very few knew much about the man. Not that he led a secluded life or refused to reveal any details about himself.

They just never asked.

To his students, he was just a dry, old, old fashioned, poetry loving, detention doling vice principal and English teacher. Another teacher whose long, boring lectures they hated to sit through.

They didn't notice that the picture of his "sister" was just him in a dress. Or perhaps, that one they did notice, but were too kind to comment. But certainly they didn't see the picture to the right of it.

The one of him next to three students. Three students who never thought they would graduate from high school, let alone with flying colors. Yet under his encouragement and tutelage, they flourished, all getting generous scholarship offers from his _alma mater_. He had gotten the picture along with three letters exuding with overly flowered (but grammatically correct) language of gratitude just as they finished their first semester. A week after news of their car crash—a head on collision with a van driven by drunk freshmen—came home. He kept it on his desk, one of only two real mementos of any kind, to remind him that the impossible often occurred.

His pupils were aware of a few aches and pains that came with age, but what they didn't know was the true extent of his injuries. The fall that ended his gymnastic career although the cheering squad at Casper High refused to let him relinquish his role as team captain and arranged things with the principal to let him wheel out the spirit sparklers attached to his wheelchair in a stunning solo run during his senior spirit week.

Lancer's students never realized that he was a gamer to the highest degree, winning the new and improved version of the extremely popular Doomed five times running. He was the only user to have gained thirty five silver keys to the apocalypse and consequently had been personally contacted by the makers of the game to advise them on the next upgraded version.

And that wasn't even including the bizarre connection that had given him to the director that told him that with the right script in his hand, he could voice a wicked villain. Perhaps a red demon. Perhaps twin bounty hunters. Who knew where this new avenue could lead if he played his cards right.

His teaching always came first, though. Before any personal gain or comfort. They were his life and meant everything to him.

But they never knew. They never bothered to ask.

.

* * *

**Backstory is a weird mix of observations from the show, blatantly borrowed in bits and pieces, and made up on the spot. More depressing than I thought it needed to be. But eh, I likes it. :3  
**


	73. 12TOTY Stuff

**Yay sibling fluff stuff.  
**

* * *

**Stuff  
**

A "Teacher of the Year" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

"But he has stuff to do after class!"

Danny stopped short in surprise when he heard Jazz's plea for mercy from Lancer mix with his own.

It made no sense.

Jazz thought he slacked off. He hadn't been getting good grades for months now. That was the entire reason he was in this mess right now. And he didn't even have an excuse like being in four different after school clubs like she was. Not band, or even year book. Nothing. And he only had two friends of any note.

He would have thought that his sister, his overbearing, know-it-all, nothing-matters-but-school-and-psychology sister would have been the first to gang up on him, nag him for being a worthless idiot who couldn't even try to get solid B minuses.

Yet here she was, defending his urgent need to do… umm… amorphous… stuff… after class…?

"Whaaaaa…?" was his oh-so-very coherent response when his brain finally caught up with him. "How do you know I have stuff to do?"

.

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**.  
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	74. 14PE Conformity

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom or Asch's experiments.

* * *

**Conformity  
**

A "Public Enemies" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Danny stood at Jazz's window where he could get a better view of where yet another platoon of Walker's ghosts were patrolling his street.

"Where does he get them all?" he growled.

"All what?" asked Jazz as she entered her room.

"Guards. Walker must have a couple of hundred working for him. I know walker is really strong but how does he control them all? Ghosts are pretty independent, their individual obsessions are too important to them to give it up to follow Walker's obsession."

"Could they be clones?" asked Jazz.

"No, he talks to them, gives them orders, and they report back. He wouldn't have to do that if they were clones, besides it takes too much power to create and maintain so many. "

"So, how come they all look the same?" asked Jazz.

"It's the uniform. Walker's second in command has a cape and eye patch. I noticed the others have different voices."

"Do they make clothes in the Ghost Zone?" asked Jazz.

Danny figured he better say something before she decided to arrange a shopping trip."

"No, clothes are sort of well, part of the ghost. They're generated as part of their manifestation."

"Then all the ghosts that work for Walker want to have the same appearance?"

"I guess," Danny shrugged, "There's probably a rule about it. And fashion police to enforce it."

"Hmm…" Jazz evicted Danny from her desk chair and pulled out a book from the pile. She scanned the index of "Psychology and the Criminal Mind" and began thumbing thought the heavy volume.

"Here it is." Jazz began reading from her text. "The Asch Conformity Experiments show that social pressures can force people to blend in against their better judgments."

"What does this have to do with Walker's goons?" Danny asked.

"Just listen." Jazz told him and continued to read. "In the 1950's he conducted a series of experiments. Test subjects were told they were taking a vision test. When undercover plants posing as other test subjects gave the wrong answer, the test subjects would go along with it even though they knew the answer was incorrect. The larger the group selecting the wrong answer, the more likely the test subject was to agree with the incorrect answer… "

Danny felt his eyes crossing.

"Jazz. Jazz!" Danny went on when his sister had finally ground to a halt.

"Hate to interrupt, but what are you talking about?"

Jazz gave her brother one of those looks that suggested there was a reason he didn't get A's.

"This is how Walker's ability works to get a large force. He puts ghosts in a situation where the social pressure makes them conform. He probably started with a small group of guards and added other ghosts one by one. Each new guard was pressured into behaving like the rest. Eventually they event changed to look like each other. Bullet is probably a recent acquisition that hasn't finished being assimilated yet."

"How long does it take? Is it permanent?" Danny shuddered. "No wonder he's so good a overshadowing."

Jazz shrugged. "Who knows? But once a ghost's personality is completely subsumed, there's no going back. That's why Walker is so fixated on making sure everyone follows the rules. The more ghosts that he gets to conform, the more he can bring under his control."

Danny took a minute to digest this. "Is there a limit to the number of ghosts he can bring under his influence?"

Jazz continued to page through her book. "Probably. If the group gets bigger than he can impress with his authority, it will start breaking up into smaller groups that will ferment pockets of dissent. Unless he is willing to have parts of his forces getting ideas of their own, he'd have to keep the numbers below his power limits."

"He's a real control freak." Danny confirmed. "His prison in the Ghost Zone is a huge and he keeps a pretty tight rein on both prisoners and guards."

"That would tend to confirm that he's close to his limit. That's probably why he's so hell-bent on capturing you. He can't afford to show any sign of weakness. Easing up might make others think there's a chance a revolt could be successful."

"I guess that's the consolation prize. His force is as big as it's going to get."

Danny sighed and made his way downstairs.

It was getting late and his parents weren't home yet. Danny sat down on the couch. He could hear the warden's overshadowed citizens patrolling outside. Walker was one of the strongest ghosts he had ever met, excluding Plasmius.

"I'm glad there isn't a ghost stronger in this ability. If there was, it would be able to command an army."

This thought provided comfort. At least until he met Pariah Dark.

.

* * *

**((No livestream tonight due to internet issues. We'll have a double feature of Million Dollar Ghost and Control Freaks next Friday. :D))  
**


	75. 16MI Home Sweet Home

When I watched this, I've wondered just what the backwash incident Vlad mentioned was. It was obviously memorable. My muse was completely unhelpful with ideas, so gave up, wrote something different and hope someone else comes up with a good story for it.

* * *

**Home Sweet Home  
**

A "Maternal Instincts" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Danny dropped onto the couch with a grateful sigh and stretched his aching muscles. A hot shower and a chat with friends did wonders to ease both body and mind. He could hear his parents in the kitchen amicably preparing dinner. A feeling of peace and well-being settled over him.

He should have known it wouldn't last. It was FentonWorks, after all. Danny answered the doorbell. It was the Amity Park Police.

"Oh, Hi Officer Bigsby. What can I do for you?"

"We've had some calls from your neighbors. Is that your helicopter parked in the middle of the street?"

.

* * *

**.  
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	76. 15FN The Phases of Halloween

Information on the phases of Halloween were derived from the Halloween episode of Ned's Declassified Guide and Tommy's website /article/.../the-seven-stages-of-halloween

* * *

**The Phases of Halloween  
**

A "Fright Night" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Danny and Sam listened to Tucker going on and on about his Halloween strategy. He had adapted the city maps they had used for their ghost hunting patrols to plan out the best route. He was practically waxing poetic about the game theory algorithms he had adapted to optimize chocolate collection. It was actually kind of impressive.

"So where's your costume?" asked Sam.

Tucker pulled out novelty glasses with attached nose and popped it on his face.

"That is so phase one," scoffed Sam.

"Phase one? Phase one of what?" asked Danny.

"The phases of Halloweenerism," Sam explained. "The first phase is for youngest kids. It's about trick or treating. As you progress though phase one costumes go from pretty and fun to scary."

Tucker took up the lesson, "To finally a very minimal costume. In any case, it's all about all about the candy."

"In phase two," Sam went on, "Tricks are more important than treats and in phase three it's all about going to parties and costumes become acceptable again."

"So what phase am I in?" asked Danny asked.

Sam rolled her eyes. "Phase two, obviously. You've just spent the whole week preparing scary tricks for the haunted house in order to beat Dash."

"Now, if you'll excuse me, It's time to get hit with something sweet." Tucker sauntered toward to door.

Suddenly the door burst open and Danny's parents burst in, firing globs of green foam and talking excitedly about ghost readings.

"What phase are they in?" Danny inquired.

"I think we need to make them a special category," mused Sam.

After they got rid Mr. and Mrs. Fenton, Sam watched Danny transform into Phantom to go check out Dash's display.

Sam was just going to go look for him when Danny reappeared carrying of all things, the Fright Knight's sword. Sam felt that she was put into the role of responsible parent as she tried to convince Danny that the sword was a bad idea.

"Rats! I've moved into the next Phase of Halloween, the parenting phase, without having the fun of the party phase," Sam mumbled to herself.

Then followed a mad scramble to find a way to contain a bizarre supernatural nightmare, rescue Tucker and Lancer from their worst nightmares, and to return the Fright Night and his sword to the Ghost Zone. Sam stood blinking at their narrow escape as she watched Danny return to his human form.

Danny flashed their teacher a winning smile.

"I think we might need to make a special phase of Halloween for us, too," Sam said under her breath.

.

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**.  
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	77. 15FN Making Book

At the beginning of the episode Tucker questions why Dash carries an old pair of underwear around with him.

* * *

**Making Book  
**

A "Fright Night" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

"When you taste defeat," Dash had challenged him, "You have to eat these!" Dash pulled a bedraggled pair of underwear from the inside pocket of his letter jacket.

Danny had agreed to the side bet and now was going to have to literally eat his words.

"Bon appetighty-whitey, loser" snickered Dash.

The crowd gathered around hooting and cat calling as the plate with Dash's bedraggled underwear was placed in front of Fenton.  
His friends sympathetically handed him a salt and pepper shaker and placed a clothespin on his nose.

"I don't think that's going to help," called Kwan. "Dash has been carrying them around ever since he outgrew them in the seventh grade."

"Why?" Tucker couldn't help asking.

"They're his lucky underwear," Kwan announced. "He's won more games wearing that than any other pair.

"If they're so great, why doesn't he ever wash them?" Sam asked in disgust.

"That might wash the luck right out of them," Kwan explained.

Danny face turned a pale shade of green.

It was an application of ghost powers that Danny had never previously considered. As placed each scrap of cloth and elastic in his mouth, the half ghost inconspicuously generated a small ecto-plasmic charge to incinerate it before gulping down the ashes with a glass of water.

Their class mates watched with ridicule and amazement and as, piece by piece, the loser kid consumed the football player's briefs.

Dash gloated until a thought belatedly occurred to him.

Danny Fenton had eaten his good luck.

.

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	78. 17LIL Lucky in Light

Okay, the nerd side of me got the better of me. Each time I've watched this episode, I've gotten distracted with this particular breach of Physics.

* * *

**Lucky in Light  
**

A "Lucky in Love" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Danny transformed and took off down the hall after Johnny 13's shadow materialized out of the drinking fountain. He had to subdue it quickly before the fight attracted attention. Sam's opinion aside, Paulina wasn't likely to forget his secret. Still that didn't mean he wanted to make the situation worse.

The ghost split and its halves smashed into him and sending him tumbling down the hall to end up in a heap in front of the science lab. He needed a light source but the empty hallway was dimly lit. There was bound to be something in the science lab. Phasing through the door, he quickly scanned the room. There was a magnifying glass on the lab bench. Perhaps it would do. He shot up through the ceiling and Shadow came right after him, grinning and eager for a fight. Pulling the magnifying glass from behind his back, Danny used his finger to fire a small ghost ray through the glass. Hopefully, the low level beam wouldn't shatter the glass.

It didn't, but it didn't intensify the beam either. Somehow, the blast was spread out, bathing Shadow in a wash of green light. It did the trick, however. Shadow cried out and dissipated.

Later that night Danny added a few notes to his personal Ghost Zone field guide. Apparently a convex lens spreads an ecto-beam out instead of concentrating it. Yet another example of how Ghost Zone physics differed from the real world. He'd have to try a few experiments.

.

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**((Livestream Friday night at 7 and midnight of episodes 19: Million Dollar Ghost and 20: Control Freaks. Preshow is Addam's Family. livestream /pieinthesky))  
**


	79. 18LL Understanding the Prey

This is one of my favorite episodes. There is so much potential here to work with. So what does my muse decide to do? *Sigh*

* * *

**Understanding the Prey**

A "Life Lessons" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Skulker was puzzled. He could not understand the behavior of his prey. This prey was so unlike any he had hunted before. That was probably why he was unable to succeed in capturing the half human.

He had other challenges before but he had always been able to find an exploitable weakness. Maybe that was part of the problem. Humans seemed to have so many weaknesses that up until now he had not thought it was worth his effort. He could hardly gain renown by capturing a human. It would be like mounting a fly as a trophy.

But then the rumors began to filter through the Ghost Zone. There was something new and his curiosity had been peaked enough to seek out this half-ghost half-human. It had turned out to be well worth his attention. As more and more ghosts were thwarted, the whelp was no longer considered a joke. By the time word had gotten around that Danny Phantom had kicked the powerful Fright Night out of his territory, he knew that capturing the halfa would make his reputation.

Then by chance he had come across another human: the Hunter Girl. Seeing her determination to hunt the Ghost Boy, he thought he had found a kindred spirit. She might be a human but her capabilities were enhanced with some impressive technology. What would be sweeter than to out-hunt the hunter?

Yet these humans continued to provide one surprise after another. He clearly did not understand them as much as he thought. The key to a hunter's success was in understanding its prey. What abilities and skills did it have? How had it adapted to its natural environment? What are its habits, its needs, what motivated it? He had to get inside his quarry's head; figure out how it thought. Then he would be able to predict its reactions.

He had thought he was on the right track with the sack as both the Hunter Girl and the Ghost Boy seemed to value it. Yet they both claimed that it wasn't the package but how they cared for it that was important. This made no sense. What advantage could there be to wasting time, energy, and resources for no apparent purpose? There was something he was missing here. Discovering what it was might be the key to understanding human nature.

Skulker found a sack that he used to hold venomous snakes and shook it out. The snake wasted no time in slithering for cover. The ghost hunter then knelt and scooped a quantity of sand into the bag. Picking it up he hefted it to judge to weight, added a few more handfuls of sand and then, satisfied, knotted the top closed. Then he tore a swath of cloth from an old cloak and wrapped one end. He repositioned it to lie in the crook of his arm.

He looked at it and frowned. There was no immediate revelation but he hadn't expected one. To learn what he needed to know about a creature, he had to spend a lot of time carefully observing it. Mimicking the behavior would yield him what he needed. It just required patience.

.

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	80. 16MI The Plasmius Maximus

Inventing the Plasmius Maximus requires testing. It takes a lot of balls to test something meant to remove a half-ghost's powers on yourself.

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**The Plasmius Maximus  
**

A "Maternal Instincts" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

Deep breath.

No, can't do it.

Okay, try again. Deep breath. Finger on the button.

Neon green spark. Spark settled into a piercing glow on the device.

Can't do it.

Have to do it. No other way. Deep breath.

Two stabbing prongs. Almost imperceptible whine of the battery losing charge. Have to do it.

Deep breath.

Two prongs just touched skin.

Piercing scream. Head thrown back as muscles spasm in agony. Not like electricity, not warm and tingling and massaging like electricity. No, like claws. Like falling.

No, not _like_ falling. Actually falling. Hello, floor. Cold, hard floor soothing the burning claw gouges. Wonderful floor but it doesn't stop the falling. Falling back into the depths of the mind. Not in control anymore. Nothing there. What's going on?

So tired.

Sleep. No, can't sleep. Have to make sure it worked. Have to see if it worked. Don't want to do that again.

What if it doesn't wear off?

No, no, can't think that. It'll wear off. It has to. Three hours, all the simulations said three hours.

Ugh. Feels like being sat on by an elephant. Can't take deep breaths. Feel so heavy. So weak.

So this is what it's like to feel human.

I'd forgotten.

.

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	81. 15FN He Had it Comin'

**Livestream of Memory Blank tonight at 7 pm and midnight EST. Livestream /pieinthesky  
**

* * *

**He Had It Comin'**

A "Fright Knight" drabble

By Avearia

* * *

_._

_Fenton. _

Just—_damn _him. Dash found Fenturd annoying enough without the klutziness. Why girls found that cute was beyond him.

But seriously? Everything Fenton touched, he ruined. Usually at Dash's expense. 34 beakers during science, leading to an F on their group-lab report. Dash's room during a party—everything broken, including the computer.

And this time? Dash was minding his own business, helping hang fliers for the haunted house, when BAM! Paint all over his favorite letterman jacket. That was the last straw.

Growling, Dash grabbed a fistful of Fenton's shirt and wound up to punch.

Fenton had it comin'.

.

* * *

_Considering all the stuff these two boys do to each other, I often wonder who started the feud… Dash or Danny. Or maybe both, since in any feud, each party considers themselves the victim. _

_After all, Danny might be the weaker one, but he isn't completely innocent… _


	82. 16MI Talking to the Mirror

**Before "Maternal Instincts". Inventing a device like the Plasmius Maximus requires cunning, intelligence, testing, and someone to bounce ideas off of. Talking to one's self is expected. Right?**

* * *

**Talking to the Mirror  
**

A "Maternal Instincts" drabble

By NebulousMistress

* * *

_._

Vlad wasn't a fruitloop.

He wasn't. People talked to themselves all the time. Intelligent people, well-spoken people, influential people. They all discussed ideas with the mirror, ranted to empty rooms, tossed theories into the mindless ether and pulled from it the answers of the universe.

Of course none of them could claim to do it quite like this.

Vlad glared at his spectral duplicate as though he could somehow lay upon him the blame for this latest idea.

"You really think it's a good idea?" Vlad asked.

Plasmius merely gave his human duplicate a look to convey how unimpressed he was with the situation.

"Right," Vlad said. "But how do we go about this? And most importantly how do we make sure this isn't used against us at some point? Stripping a half-ghost of his powers, no matter how temporary, is still a dangerous proposition."

"We don't," Plasmius said. "We want it to work, not fizzle out in a blast of failure. We'll need to test it."

Vlad went rigid at that idea before slumping over with a groan. "Not testing again," he pleaded.

"How else are we going to make sure it works?"

"Last time we testing something on ourselves we ended up spending three days in a thermos or don't you remember?"

Plasmius grinned, fangs glinting in the light. Vlad could feel red eyes trailing up and down his form. "I remember we found **some**thing to pass the time."

Vlad made a slight 'eep' sound and fought off the urge to squirm. He cleared his throat. "You just want to test something on me again," he accused, his voice much less sure of itself now.

Plasmius sauntered closer, watching as Vlad backed up into a lab bench. Vlad's eyes darted back and forth, searching for a way out. Instead he found black gloved hands on either side of him, pinning him in place. "On the contrary," Plasmius purred. "I think you're the one who wants to experiment."

Plasmius popped out of sight, the duplicate merging with the whole. The disorientation faded as Vlad blinked the redness out of his vision. Experimenting on himself with his own inventions wasn't **that** bad of an idea. He knew his Ghost Stinger was based on a targeted flare of electrical power. Maybe he could build off of that. First thing he would need was a source of electricity, preferably hand-held...

Ooo. Vlad purred in anticipation as he started searching. Now where did he hide that TASER...

.

* * *

.


	83. 16MI Prey

**After "Maternal Instincts". Running scared for three hours was not an option. Not by a long shot. Vlad was no one's prey.**

* * *

**Prey  
**

A "Maternal Instincts" drabble

By NebulousMistress

* * *

_._

Vlad Masters ran for his life.

Under the circumstances he could have allowed himself to dwell on the night's failures. Maddie rejecting him quite soundly. Daniel luring him in with lies and deceit to snap this torturous device around his waist. Being on the receiving end of his own invention's stinging bite. Reduced to running from his creations lest they decide to carry out their training and flay tender flesh from living bone at their first opportunity. If he were really feeling self-defeating he might entertain the notion that Jack Fenton somehow managed to defend himself properly while he was reduced to running like a prey animal.

He might have allowed himself to think these things if he weren't running for his life.

His lungs screamed with all the force his voice was unable to carry. His legs burned with an agonizing fire almost as horrible as the sting of the Plasmius Maximus. Still he ran, hearing all too well the snorts and growls of the beasts that chased him.

He heard the snap before he felt the pain. He saw himself falling before he registered the movement. It took a second for him to realize he could no longer run. Vlad's eyes darted around, looking for something to defend himself with. A few errant sticks, a fallen log, and the traitorous rock mocking him from the dirt. He turned over though he didn't know why. Maybe he could use his arms to protect himself for a moment. Maybe they would respond to the sight of a neck upturned in submission. Maybe...

Maybe they were just going to kill him and be done with it. The first of the lot, a monster that might once have been a rabbit, grabbed at Vlad's sprained ankle and pulled. The world went white for a moment as Vlad screamed in pain. That pain slowly ebbed, returning his eyesight as he watched the mutant rabbit licking its paw like it had been burned. He... wasn't dead yet. He still had a chance then. Vlad hauled himself to his feet and gritted his teeth against the pain in his ankle. The rabbit growled at him before leaping again.

The rabbit landed on Vlad's chest, shoving him back onto the ground. It raised a paw and unsheathed long black claws before something... happened.

The distinct sound of an electrical discharge danced in Vlad's ears right before the rabbit screamed and scrambled off of him.

Crashing through the undergrowth heralded the arrival of more of them. Vlad pulled himself to his feet as they crouched, eyes narrowing and maws drooling. Yet...

A feral grin spread across Vlad's face as he realized. This device that Daniel entrapped him in... His pets couldn't touch him without experiencing pain, same as it had caused him pain, same as Daniel had been less than willing to grapple with him in their fight. Ah, Daniel. The boy probably didn't realize that he'd left his enemy in possession of a rather potent weapon.

Vlad crouched down as well, hands splaying in an imitation of the claws his pets brandished. He allowed his own growl to fall from his lips, an elegant purr surrounded by harsh wild snarls.

Vlad Masters would **not** lose to a bunch of mutated prey animals. Not today.

.

* * *

.


	84. 16MI The Dangers of Mad Science

**This was caused by the in-chat discussion that Vlad should probably be facing down more angry mobs than he does. I figure it's probably something he tries not to think about.**

** Tries to anyway... *evil laughter***

* * *

**The Dangers of Mad Science  
**

A "Maternal Instincts" drabble

By NebulousMistress

* * *

_._

The Dangers of Mad Science

Lightning flashed across the sky as the howling wind brought the rumblings of discontent up the mountain. Vlad Masters looked over the parapets of his castle wall to see the flickering of torches in the distance. Throngs of them came up the winding road, their angry voices vowing death for their lord.

The trapdoor opened, revealing the face of his beautiful wife. "Come down from there, Vladimir," she coaxed. "You don't want to be struck by lightning again."

"Maddie," he whispered. He pulled her up onto the roof and into his arms. He buried his face in her hair and inhaled, basking in her soft scent. How... How could they dare take this away from him? "We have to defend ourselves."

She was confused for a moment then the wind brought another gust of angry rumblings. The scent of burning pitch reeked on the air for a moment then was gone. She tensed in her beloved's arms as she saw the mob swarming up the mountain. "Oh Lord in Heaven," she whispered.

"No," Vlad said. "He's forsaken us as punishment for what we dared accomplish."

She hid her face in his shoulder to muffle a sob of fear.

"We will defend ourselves, my dear. Get Jack to prepare the boiling oil. You may assist me in the laboratory if you can."

*****

The shouts and screams outside the castle walls were punctuated with the splash of boiling oil and the idiot laughter of Vlad's imbecilic assistant. Inside Vlad and Maddie worked feverishly, pumping fluids and connecting wires to his creation. For too long Maddie had been unable to bear him the son he so desired. Now... Now she wouldn't have to. He stroked a hand over the soft, cold cheek of their last hope. "Daniel," he whispered, giving it a name.

The screams changed as a loud slam heralded the falling of the outer gate. The mob had breached the courtyard.

"We have no time," he said. "Raise the platform!"

Maddie turned the crank that exposed their son, their last hope, Vlad's greatest creation to the storm. He rose along with it, a tall thin figure silhouetted against the glow of fire and lightning.

"Throw the first switch!" he shouted as lightning struck the copper rods above. All around him the storm brought up the screams of the mob, the glow of fire, the stench of smoke and oil. "Throw the second switch!" He grabbed the electrodes and pressed them into the bolts on the sides of his creation's neck. The body twitched and thrashed in its bonds but gave no outward sign of life. "The third switch!" he shouted. "Throw it now!"

Vlad arched back and screamed as the electricity engulfed him as well, beginning to drain from him his own life. Still he held the electrodes there, electricity flowing along every nerve in the dead flesh below him.

And then...

It all stopped. The platform began to lower at a frightening pace. He collapsed onto the body before him, shaking and exhausted. But there was no beat, no sound in the creature's chest. Only the distant screaming of his beloved wife.

The platform slammed onto the lab floor, throwing Vlad to the ground. His lab was in chaos as the mob ravaged it, tore down years of work and smashed it all. Yet he could not bring himself to care, not when his one chance at a perfect son was ruined. **That** he hated them for. He grabbed the electrodes and stabbed them into the first person he saw, relishing their scream.

"VLAD!" came a familiar shout.

"Maddie..." Vlad looked up from his gleeful murder to see his wife being dragged off by the mob. "NO!" He dropped the electrodes and was promptly grabbed as well. He screamed like the damned as he fought them, veneer of civilization lost as he roared and clawed and kicked like a beast. He broke free of their grasping hands and binding ropes, charging through the mass to his wife's side.

"Madeline," he murmured once he'd caught her. Coarse ropes held her in bondage, prevented her from holding him. Instead he pulled her close and kissed her, long and frantic, while around them their lab burned.

Rough hands grabbed at him and dragged him away from her. "NO!" he shouted, reaching for her as she disappeared, carried away by the mob. "MADELINE!"

*****

"MADELINE!" Vlad shouted as he screamed himself awake.

He gasped for air, eyes frantically searching for the horrible mob and their biting ropes. Instead he was greeted by glaring green and gold, by soft reds and deep black. His castle still stood. He slept alone. He wasn't building a creature in his laboratory. It was all just a dream.

But it was so vivid... He could still feel the harsh drag of ropes against his skin as he was bound by the angry mob. He could still smell the stench of burning pitch, of unwashed peasant, of the lightning's ozone.

He could still see Maddie's frightened eyes, hear her terrified screams.

Vlad shuddered. He curled up in silk and satin, rubbing the sheets over his skin to banish the feeling of helplessness, of unbridled animalistic anger.

He should really stop watching those late night movies.

.

* * *

.


	85. 19MDG Bull's Eye

**I do not own Danny Phantom and would like to acknowledge Cordria's one one shot "Father's Duty" for inspiration.**

* * *

**Bull's Eye  
**

A "Million Dollar Ghost" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

_._

The hacky sack hit Phantom full-on in the chest. It burst splattering him with goo. At first shock, Danny felt nothing but then the pain hit. He collapsed, shrieking as the toxic substance began to eat into his body. His torment was so stark that even the ghost hunters stood appalled. Phantom continued to writhe as his form bubbled and dissolved. Jack dropped to his knees and tried to scrape the gel off. To his horror, Phantom's face sloughed off with it. The cries choked off as the ghost's throat liquefied. The Ghost Boy reached out and gripped Jack's hand, his eyes filled with desperation but unable to speak. In moments there was nothing left but a green puddle. The hand gripping Jack's had been the last thing to go.

The young man who had thrown the weapon callously commented, "Well, that's a shame. Now, we can't collect the reward."

.

* * *

**(Livestream of Episode 21: Memory Blank tonight at livestream /pieinthesky at 7 pm and midnight EST. Preshow is Shaun of the Dead. There's also the possibility of a Fright Night Halloween streaming, details tbd)**


	86. 19MDG Ghost Drills

**Okay, I guess I did come up with something better. Here is a series of drabbles. **

** I do not own Danny Phantom, **

** Nor do I own "The Compleat Wrks of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged)" written by Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield. But I do recommend that you watch it.**

* * *

**Ghost Drills  
**

A "Million Dollar Ghost" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

_._

Fire drills are ubiquitous but other schools have special drills due to special geographical hazards. In Texas, they have tornado drills. In California, they have earthquake drills. In Amity Park, they have…ghost drills.

At some level Danny had to admit it was better than running and screaming in panic but herding everyone into the gym just meant that the ghost found them conveniently trapped. The effect was rather like a cage full of monkeys…in a lightning storm.

While Danny looked for an inconspicuous corner to "go ghost," Jazz calmly took notes. They definitely were going to have to revise procedures.

.

.

Lancer checked the auditorium as the students settled into their seats and the curtain rose. As if mirroring the actors on stage, two Guys in White stood sentinel at the entrance. Perhaps Hamlet was a bit overly ambitious for the drama club. The actors stumbled through their opening lines. Hamlet took his place and was confronted by his father's ghost. The stage crew had obviously gone all out with special effects by dangling a sock painted with glow-in-the-dark paint.

The GIW reacted instantly. There was something worse than shouting "fire" in a crowded theater: actually setting the stage on fire.

.

.

Following the shouting, Lancer found that the hallway was blocked by a jump ramp that the Extreme Ghost Breakers had set up. They were egging on students to attempt daring stunts on a skateboard. Lancer arrived just in time to see a nervous student launch himself down the ramp. He cringed as the student failed to clear the trash barrels.

"That's so extreme, Dude! No helmet!" The Ghost Breakers cheered, exchanging high fives.

The nurse was called.

"You simply have to do something!" she shouted. "I've treated more cuts and contusions today than from all the previous ghost attacks combined."

.

.

Danny was tempted to let the ghost tear the Groovy Gang limb from limb.

They had thought all they needed was enough Kitty Krunch.

"What did you think you were doing?" Phantom shouted.

"Like, trying to get the mask off," the blond teen answered.

"That's not a mask. That's his face," Phantom said caught between astonishment and contempt.

"You mean that's like ... a real ghost?!" the girl gasped.

"Duh!" Phantom answered.

"It can't be. It's always a guy in a mask," the boy insisted.

"Not this time," Phantom assured them.

The gang looked at each other and screamed. "Like, RUN!"

.

.

It took Lancer some time to decide which was the lesser of the evils.

On one hand were the ghost hunters that had answered Master's invitation complete with their accompanying foot-high stacks of paperwork, property damage, upset parents, angry school board, humiliation, ineffective measures, and endangered students. On the other hand… well at least the alternative was home grown in Amity Park and no one could accuse them of being in it only for the money. Their motivation sat in his first and third period English classes.

Lancer sighed and reached for the phone and dialed the number to FentonWorks.

.

.

The new policy had established and the school went into lockdown during a ghost attack.

Fortunately, Danny was warned by his ghost sense so by the time the alarm sounded he was already transforming in the bathroom stall.

Teachers took roll and reported anyone missing or absent. It only took one drill for Lancer to start noting which students weren't present. By the second attack, a pattern had been established. A particular student only left if the drill turned out to be a genuine attack. By the third incident, Lancer was already using Fenton as a reliable early warning system.

.

.

True to the promise he had made to his son, Jack had stayed away from Casper High. So it was no small triumph when Lancer had called and practically begged him to come back.

A lesser man would have rubbed it in but Jack magnanimously decided to be gracious about it. He even made a real effort to avoid calling special attention to his children when responding to a ghost call even though Lancer seemed to think that he had given Danny some sort of Fenton tech.

Besides, no victory was sweeter than the proud look in his son's eyes.

.

* * *

**.**


	87. 21MB Gravestone

**I figure that, without ghost powers, Jazz wouldn't have been saved from Spectra during Spirit Week. This explains her absence during the entire episode, is that she never survived past the lighting of the spirit sparklers.**

* * *

**Gravestone  
**

A "Memory Blank" fanfiction

By PuppetMaster55

* * *

_._

It was a bright and sunny day, the kind that wrung out happiness and joy in even the most somber of goths. The parks they passed during the drive were full of laughing families, giggling couples and mischievous groups of kids. Danny thought he saw some of the jocks from school tossing a football, carefree smiles on their faces, just like everyone else in the world.

Danny didn't feel very much like smiling. Or being happy.

He didn't feel like he would ever be happy again.

They finally reached their destination, and he got out of the car with the rest of his family, pulling the front of his jacket closed against the chill air. Danny lagged behind his parents as they walked forward, trying not to notice the distance between the two of them as they moved side-by-side. The Fentons moved through the rows or carved stones with careful purpose, more than aware of the reason for their gathering. Eventually, his parents stopped, standing resolute before one specific stone, while Danny hesitated before moving to awkwardly bridge the gap between his parents. Together, they stood before the singular gravestone that brought them here, one created from a technical malfunction during spirit week of freshman year.

The funeral had been a quiet affair, with Miss Spectra offering her services as grief counselor while friends of the family, most of whom Danny had never met or even heard of, came to offer their condolences. One, a billionaire by the name of Vlad Masters, was currently staying with them, and paying for everything out of pocket. Danny wasn't sure what was going on, but he hated that his dad kept going on about how their loss was some sort of ghost conspiracy; ghosts, from what he understood, were evil entities only out for their own selfish desires. It had caused a rift to form in his parents' marriage, one that this Vlad was taking advantage of with ruthless precision.

He hated this, that Jazz had – that Jazz was... gone, and no one was doing anything about it. It made him sick to the depths of his stomach, since he had been there to see it happen.

Danny tried not to think about it very much. Ignoring reality was better than the alternative.

In front of him, the gravestone bore a single name, with little else but two years below it, sixteen years apart.

_Jazz Fenton_  
_1988 – 2004_

.

* * *

**.**


	88. 21MB Dear Jack

**Inspired by the events in "Memory Blank". The entire first season and Danny didn't have his powers yet.**

**"Maternal Instincts" would end very differently if Vlad had no interest in a human, boring, Jack-spawned Danny. If Maddie went to the symposium alone.**

((Pretend that the line between the slashes is crossed out. Fanfiction dislikes that formatting.))

* * *

**Dear Jack...  
**

A "Memory Blank" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

_._

The Specter Deflector was the last thing he ever gave her.

Jack Fenton had watched as the love of his life, his Maddie, walked out the door with an invitation to some symposium in her hand. She told him to spend some time with his son; they both needed it after, well... after Jazz.

And then she was gone.

It was a week later before they heard any word from her. Anything at all. And when they did...

It was just a letter. A letter that Jack could not put down.

_To my husband Jack_

I'm sorry, my dear. But I will not be returning to you and Danny.

So much has happened in our lives lately. Discovering ghosts. Jasmine's untimely death. Our lives have been thrown into upheaval time and time again but this... I don't feel we can bounce back from this. Not from the loss of our little girl.

I won't be coming home. But know that I will not demand any of our assets nor will I fight you for custody of our Danny. I know you will raise him well without me.

All I ask is that the both of you try to move on. Don't search for Jazz in the Ghost Zone, I beg of you. I know you want to and I know you won't find her. Even if you do find what she is now that won't be our little girl. Let her go.

Let me go.

Please.

I'm staying here in Wisconsin with Vlad.

/Know that I love you both./ Know that I will miss you both.

Goodbye.

Madeline

Jack still couldn't believe it.

He wouldn't. Not when he couldn't smell his Maddie on the paper of the letter when he opened it; not when it smelled like some man. Not when "I love you" was scratched out by an angry hand that wasn't hers. Not when there were dried tears on the page.

Not while Danny missed her.

.

* * *

**((Happy Halloween. And it's the last day to vote in the DA contest! :D))  
**


	89. 1313 Lucky

**Two drabbles for you today. The first contains an odd character waiting in line to get out of the Fenton Portal in"13". He shows up again in the mob scene of Phantom Planet. I gave him a bit of a personality, but I didn't make him up.**

* * *

**Lucky  
**

A "13" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

_._

_Relief  
_

Danny's fist almost made contact when he stopped to get a good look at the new ghost. A pipe in hand and sailor's cap on its head, which was nothing more than a gigantic eyeball, complete with veins and everything. The eye-head swiveled to look at his almost-attacker unperturbed.

"What?" it asked gruffly.

"Um…" Danny blinked. "Are you related to the Observants?"

The eyeball managed to snort somehow. "Definitely not."

"Oh good," Danny grinned as he pulled his arm back. "Then I won't feel bad about doing… THIS!" Danny swung.

That would teach the newbie not to commandeer his bedroom.

.

_Combat_

Danny had been on solitary patrol and was just about to declare Amity Park and its citizens safe for the night when blue mist flashed before his eyes.

He wasn't worried until he realized it was Kitty. Kitty always came with Johnny and Johnny always brought Shadow. Suddenly the odds weren't looking as good as they could have…

He didn't have time to call for help before he was in desperate need of it. Danny tumbled to the ground after the concerted attack of the ghostly trio.

"Have enough, kid?"

Struggling, Danny raised himself into combat stance.

"Bring it on."

.

* * *

**If Sandy doesn't interfere, there will be a livestream of Episode 22: Doctor's Disorders tonight at 7 pm and midnight EST. livestream/pieinthesky. With a Jimmy Neutron preshow.  
**


	90. 1313 The One Ring

**Crack. Hope you like LOTR.  
**

* * *

**The One Ring  
**

A "13" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

_._

Johnny raged on the lab floor as he stood next to the now closed portal that separated him from his love.

Everything was falling to pieces. This was all wrong.

He was the one in charge. He would use the ring to restore Kitty to a bodily form, keep her from fading out into the staticy flames that threatened to pull her apart when she stepped too far out of the pale.

He would restore her to her true and beautiful form and then they could live life as they had always planned, unhampered by what everyone thought of them. No one could stop him.

Yet here was this young annoying boy, this short punk kid with unruly hair who kept on ruining all of his plans.

Flinging out his arms, he ordered his black rider to fetch back his precious possession.

"Shadow, fetch the ring! It's the one priority to rule them all."

.

* * *

**.  
**


	91. 19MDG Field Observations

**A Danny Phantom / Ghostbusters crossover.  
**

**During "Million Dollar Ghost". Explicitly part of my AU, "Sides of the Same Coin". This took far too long to write. Really.**

** The bounty was posted and a veritable "who's who" of ghost hunters showed up. With some notable exceptions. Why didn't anyone serious show up? Might it be because the bounty was posted where serious talent would overlook it?**

* * *

**Field Observations  
**

A "Million Dollar Ghost" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

_._

Twenty years of fame and long, hard hours was enough to age any man. Eventually the toll grew too much for the four of them. Peter went on to use those PhDs of his in marketing the newly franchised company. Winston took his newfound notoriety and put it to work for him, earning himself a PhD in history in the process. Egon stayed with the company for the research possibilities. Ray went back to his bookstore.

The bookstore was quiet, easy work. He made friends here, learned things, kept an ear to the ground concerning the activities of the paranormal. It was the perfect way for him to spend his retirement.

Of course that meant people always knew where to find him.

Egon came in with his laptop. He plunked it down on Ray's desk. His glasses hid a perpetual maddened glee, a side effect of twenty years of intensely hands-on paranormal research.

"All right, I'll bite," Ray said. "What'd you find?"

"Somebody posted a bounty on OccultNet this morning," Egon said, opening his laptop. Its screen flickered to life, showing the page.

"One million dollars," Ray said. He whistled. "That's quite a payout for just a ghost. What'd the kids find out about this one?"

Egon gave an easy smirk. "I called the others in, we should wait for them."

Ray took the opportunity to look Egon up and down. Years and more than a few disturbing encounters had turned Egon's hair snow white. He still had that barely constrained creepiness that so many researchers in their field displayed. He'd grown thin, pale... research had not kept him from getting creepier. Not that Ray had weathered the years so well, either. He'd gained a few (okay, forty) pounds and had gray specks throughout his hair.

The door jingled as someone stepped inside. Potential customer? Ray craned his head around to see who it was.

"I'm looking for a spell," came a singsong familiar voice. "Something to grant me fame and fortune enough to regain lost love."

"Hi Peter," Egon said.

Peter looked a little hollow. He'd lost weight after leaving active duty and had taken to dyeing his hair auburn to compensate for it thinning. Winston came up behind him, looking pretty good. Of course he'd been the youngest of them all and in the best shape so it didn't seem surprising, or fair, that his sole signs of aging were the requisite belly and white flecks in his hair.

"So what's up?" Winston asked.

"Million dollar bounty on a ghost," Ray said.

Peter shrugged. "Million dollars isn't that much anymore," he said.

"Posted on the OccultNet," Egon said.

That got their attention. The OccultNet began years ago as a legitimate place for researchers to share data, for papers to seek reviewers, for discussion of postulated theories. Over time the legitimate theories had stopped coming and the amateurs took their place. Now it had become little more than another conspiracy theory board, somewhere for armchair sleuths to banter and teenagers to rant about haunted lockers. It was highly unusual for a legitimate bounty to find its way there now.

"Who posted it?" Peter asked.

Egon shrugged. "I had one of the kids trace it. Dead end. The account's an old one. The post was bounced off of slash-x so there was nothing to trace."

Winston slid the laptop around and scrolled through the OccultNet listing. The ghost was just a kid, maybe in his early teens. White hair. White gloves, boots, belt, mantle. Black jumpsuit. Probably not what the kid would have wanted to end up wearing for eternity.

Peter looked at the account name. It wasn't just a random string like he would expect from something forged. In fact it was somehow familiar... "It's a legit bounty," he said. "I'd bet on it."

"Really?" Ray asked, that old spark of the unknown coming back to his eyes.

"It's in Amity Park," Winston said. "Where have I heard that before?"

"Ugh, forget it then," Ray said. "Amity Park is the base of Fentonworks. We've all heard of Jack Fenton."

"Well, now, wait a minute," Egon said. He had that look again. "Let's not dismiss this immediately. Something tells me this isn't quite what we think it is."

"I wonder what," Ray mumbled, sarcasm dripping from his voice. Peter sniggered.

"This is a spectral feud," Egon predicted. "It has to be. Some revenant is using the old OccultNet to make existence difficult for this one. Sounds a bit like a turf war. But why use humans? Ghosts aren't that smart."

"Masters," Peter whispered.

"He doesn't count," Egon said. "Vladimir Masters is a unique undead. No, this isn't his style. Something's going on here, something we're not seeing. We should check out this bounty."

Ray groaned. Winston patted him on the back, offering condolences. Peter looked like he could see that million dollars now...

"But we're not hunting."

"Aww, come on!" Peter whined.

"Two words, Peter," Ray said. "Jack. Fenton."

"We're just going to observe," Egon promised. "No one will ever know we were there. I want to get a look at this Danny Phantom in action."

"Fine," Peter said, his million-dollar fantasy fading in front of his eyes. "But if this is a legit bounty you're buying me pizza."

*****

Egon and Ray had the current shift. They sat on the rooftop of a building across from the Nasty Burger. This is where the hunters would likely collect to mock each other and make bold claims about who would succeed before splitting up and sabotaging each other. Peter always described it as tribal behavior, as though this were a war and they were all armies.

Ray laid on his stomach, a blanket spread under him to banish the cold of the rooftop. He wore his spectral analyzers, fiddling with the settings to force them to double as binoculars.

"The Extreme Ghostbreakers are here," Ray said. "High on adrenaline as usual. I swear, one of them is going to end up dead before the end of the year."

"Hmm," Egon said.

Ray snorted. "Oh and the Groovy Gang. Because cartoons about talking dogs and a band of hippies are the best models when forming a ghost hunting outfit. Ugh, and they even brought that white tiger of theirs."

"Should have just used a housecat," Egon said. "It'll sense spectral disturbances just as easily, won't eat you in the middle of the night, and you can always just go the pound and get a new one."

"That's morbid, Egon," Ray said, looking again. "Hmm. One of the spectators looks possessed."

"Not surprised. Can't you feel it, Ray? There's just something about this place. Powerful things are hereabouts."

"Hmm. Oh and of course. The Guys in White are here to try and cover everything up. As usual."

Egon opened his mouth to say something but a new voice stole the words he was going to say. "You expected anything different?"

Ray rolled over on his blanket to stare at Egon. Egon looked right back before they began scanning the rooftop around them. Ray adjusted his spectral analyzers, looking for something inhuman who might have said that.

A pair of red glowing eyes appeared in thin air. Around those eyes an outline shimmered into being, a human figure leaning casually on a steel vent. That outline slowly gained form, substance, a knowing smirk. Long gray-white hair tied back, tightly controlled. Wine red ascot accenting a black funerary suit. Arms crossed over his chest in a position of uncaring power.

"Masters," Egon greeted.

Vlad's red eyes blinked out, fading almost instantly into their icy blue. "Spengler, Stantz," Vlad said, meeting basic greeting with basic greeting. "Am I... intruding?"

"Umm..." Ray said, not sure what to say or do. On one hand this was the living revenant, a dangerous creature that honestly considered itself still alive in some capacity. On the other hand they had invited it onto their turf once before as a scientist, before they knew what Masters was, and it hadn't killed them then. It wouldn't now, especially since Venkmen wasn't here.

"Of course not," Egon said. "We're just here to observe. You?"

"Just keeping an eye on my... investments," Vlad drawled.

"You listed the bounty," Ray realized.

Vlad just smirked.

"This is your turf, isn't it?" Egon asked. "That's why this place feels so..." He searched for a word that described how the town felt without insulting the creature in front of them. Tainted? Slimy? Unnatural? He settled for a word that felt a little more neutral, a little more final. "Owned."

"I have no designs on this town," Vlad dismissed. "Not yet, anyway. Its taint is entirely natural. You never know, I may find its... unique charm to be useful."

"So why list the bounty?" Ray asked. "What do you have against this Phantom?"

"I have nothing at all against the boy," Vlad said, watching the action below. Jack Fenton was making a fool of himself as usual. "I don't want him damaged, I just need to keep him and his idiot father busy."

"Busy, you say?" Egon asked.

"I have plans for that one. After all..." Vlad paused before finding himself blushing a bit and breaking out into a genuine smile. The thought still touched him, still warmed his undead heart. He wasn't alone, not anymore. "He's like me."

Ray's jaw dropped while Egon grew calculating. "When you said 'idiot father'..." Egon said.

"He's the Fenton's son," Vlad said. "They don't even know he's a ghost. But then you didn't know I was either when we first met. And if Venkmen were sane you still wouldn't." He looked out over the scene below before gesturing to something or someone in the distance. The sound of spectral shrieks echoed from the sky as three ghostly vultures swooped down onto the collection of hunters.

"So this isn't really a legitimate bounty," Egon realized. "You're just trying to keep everyone busy as a distraction."

"I don't plan on honoring the bounty even if a hunter manages to catch him, if that's what you mean."

"Nor is this really a feud," Ray said. "Or a turf war. Both you and Peter lost the bet, Spengler."

"Bet?" Vlad asked.

"Yeah, they, ah, bet a pizza over what was going on here," Ray admitted. "And since this isn't a feud or a legitimate bounty..."

"Oh I'm sure the boy would claim this is a feud," Vlad drawled. He laughed, soft and evil. "He doesn't even know what a 'feud' is. Now if you'll excuse me I should probably, ah, **spice** things up a bit."

Ray and Egon watched in fascination, their instruments surreptitiously recording as Vlad stepped back from the edge of the rooftop. Black rings appeared around his waist, moving up and down to shred the human disguise worn by the revenant.

He'd died young, that much was readily apparent. His skin was tinged blue, a telltale sign of suffocation. He wore what might once have been hospital scrubs, altered by time and vanity into something more menacing. A white and red cape hung from his neck, possibly connected to some sort of symbolism that the revenant had either adopted or was forced into very early on.

He kicked off of the rooftop easily while the spectral vultures kidnapped two teenagers. The Ghostbusters watched as Plasmius taunted a third teen, one who reacted by transforming into the target Phantom and flying up to meet Plasmius in a very one-sided battle.

There were two of them now. Two living revenants. The unique undead was no longer quite so unique.

*****

The No-Tell Motel on the outskirts of Amity Park was not to their usual standards but at least it was cheap, it had a TV and if Peter didn't think about what was living in the mattress the beds were fairly comfortable. He laid on one of the beds reading the local hot sheets while Winston flipped through the channels for something useful. He found the news and what looked like an awkward weatherman attempting to report on ghost activity. Apparently there had been activity right near where Egon and Ray were scouting.

"Hey, look at that," Winston said, pointing out the video.

Peter squinted before remembering he had his reading glasses on. He pulled them off to see two very human-shaped ghosts fighting in the air. The big white and red one easily whooped the black-clad kid before tossing him into the middle of the pack of ghost hunters. The white one laughed then disappeared, fading into mist and drifting away.

"And that was the scene earlier tonight in front of the Nasty Burger. This is Lance Thunder, really regretting not taking that job in Chicago."

"No wonder their hot sheets are so legitimate," Peter mused, holding up the local newspaper. "Ghost reports make the third page news here."

A key in the door brought the attention of both of them. They both relaxed when Ray and Egon walked in, both of them looking worn out.

"How'd it go?" Winston asked.

Egon pulled out a laptop and started plugging things into it. "We ran into Masters tonight," he said.

"Oh?" Peter sat at attention. "So how is that insane excuse of a lightning rod doing?"

"Peter, today we saw the most amazing thing," Ray said, a little giddy. "Masters was there, Vlad Masters. You know how we always theorized that his human form is just a disguise. Well, we were right! We **saw** what the revenant really looks like! Transformed right in front of us! It's amazing and he still looks so human but you can see how he died, it was suffocation in water, had to be, his skin is blue like adipocere but he doesn't look slimy at all. There's no way of knowing without asking him but from the looks of it you can still see what he wore when he died! We were right, Peter, living revenants really do give up growth as spectral entities in favor of expanding and developing their human personae!"

"Tell him about the best part," Egon said, too focused on the data to spare a glance.

"And there's a second one!" Ray crowed. "A second living revenant! That Danny Phantom kid, the one the town calls 'Inviso-Bill' keeps a disguise as human as Masters does! And it's a damned good one because he's the Fenton kid! His parents are ghost hunters and his father was shooting at him with as much compassion as you'd expect a fox to show a rabbit!"

Another knock on the door broke Ray out of his excited description. Winston got up and opened the door as Egon's PKE meter started squealing, the needle spinning in its housing.

At the door was a dead man. His white hair stuck up at all angles, his skin was green and hanging off of his spectral bones. An old-style singing telegram uniform fell half-rotting from his undead form, fading into the spectral tail that seemed common among the ghosts of this area.

The ghost held a stack of pizza boxes. It silently offered them to the flabbergasted men.

Winston took the offered pizzas. The ghost then turned around and wandered off as though this were a perfectly normal occurrence.

The desk was dominated by Egon so Winston put the pizza boxes on a bed. Attached to the top box was a note. Winston picked it up and read it aloud. "'Consider this the settling of your little bet. Now stay out of my affairs.' It's initialed 'VM'."

"Masters," Peter growled.

The four of them looked at each other, then at the pizzas, then at each other. They smelled really good but none of them wanted to be the first to try a ghost-delivered pizza sent by an insane revenant. Finally Ray sighed and opened a box. The works, no anchovies, no mushrooms. He took a slice and bit into it.

It was pretty good pizza.

.

* * *

**.  
**


	92. 14PE Ghostbusters and the Fail Team

**A drabble by each of us that plays off of each other and the episode. :)  
**

* * *

**Ghostbusters and The Fail Team  
**

A "Public Enemy" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming and Ansa88

* * *

_._

The Guys in White.

The Groovy Gang.

Master's Blasters.

His parents...

Danny knew the competition. He knew which organizations were out to get him, where they were from, how they had been trained, and what kind of threat level they warranted.

Some were more dangerous than others and all were annoying as he went through his daily city-wide ghost patrols. But none of them actually posed a problem.

Then... there was the new group of ghost hunters. How they had gotten together, he would never know, but there were Dash, Kwan, and Paulina, all decked out in sickly orange Hazmat.

.:.

Paulina inspected a nonexistent speck on her nails.

"When is, like, a ghost, like, gonna show up?"

Her whine grinded Dash's ears. He sighed.

"We gotta wait for them, or we won't be able to catch up. Remember last time?"

Paulina shuddered. "I got, like, goop all, like, over my, like, best shirt!"

Dash nodded. "So we wait!"

"Guys, we've got one!" The two rushed to Kwan, who grinned at them. Opening the net, they all screamed as a rat fought its way out and skittered past them.

Danny watched them, chuckling. "Late night entertainment, who knew?" He swooped off.

.

* * *

**Episode 23: Pirate Radio tonight at 7 pm and midnight EST. livestream/pieinthesky  
**


	93. 23PR Responsibility

**Valerie could have been utterly instrumental to saving the parents and yet she was nowhere to be found.**

* * *

**Responsibility  
**

A "Pirate Radio" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

_._

Valerie trudged up to her room, her mascot uniform dragging from one arm. She tried to throw it into the corner. Rather the best she could manage was a grand-gestured drop. She fell face first onto her bed.

This was not how she expected to spend her high school career. These were supposed to be her prime goof-off years. She was supposed to be goofing off with her friends, picking on the losers, and in general getting away with all sorts of questionably legal activities. This was the time when she was old enough to finally do everything but could still use the 'too young to know better' excuse. She wasn't supposed to be working two jobs, one of them unpaid. She wasn't supposed to be handing over her paychecks to her father so they could save for her college education without having to go onto food stamps. She wasn't supposed to be patrolling the city as the only competent defense against marauding ghosts.

She wasn't supposed to be an adult yet.

Valerie sighed. She sat up on her bed and rubbed her eyes. Maybe some music would help her get through the homework she still had to do. She turned on the radio.

Whatever this new song was it was pretty nice. Relaxing but it didn't make her tired. Rather she felt more aware, more alert, ready to do what needed to be done.

She smiled and pulled out her homework, settling down to finish her math before bed.

.

* * *

**.  
**


	94. 23PR DJ P

**Hello everyone 3**

**Inspired by watching "Pirate Radio". Danny looked so enthusiastic when it came to DJ-ing for the school, I just HAD to give him his own radio show.**

**This is actually supposed to take place six months after the episode, which means it's after "Flirting With Disaster" and "Double Cross My Heart" so Danny's thoroughly over Paulina. As for which girl he is talking about, that's for you guys to decide. I hopefully left it open enough for anyone to fill that slot... Well, most anyone. You Pompous Pep, Pitch Pearl, and other yoai fans are out of luck since he did say girl.**

**Thanks for reading!**

**I do not own Danny Phantom, Psy, or any of the songs used in the one-shot!**

**Die Young by Ke$ha**  
**Wanted by Hunter Hayes**  
**We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together by Taylor Swift**

* * *

**DJ P  
**

A "Pirate Radio" fanfiction

By Reid Phantom AKA LykosLycaon

* * *

.

_... Looking for some trouble tonight_  
_Take my hand I'll show you the wild side_  
_Like it's the last night of our lives_  
_We'll keep dancing till we die_

_I hear your heart beat to the beat of the drums_  
_Oh what a shame that you came here with someone_  
_So while you're here in my arms,_  
_Let's make the most of the night like we're gonna die young_

_I hear your heart beat to the beat of the drums_  
_Oh what a shame that you came here with someone_  
_So while you're here in my arms_  
_Let's make the most of the night like we're gonna die young_

_We're gonna die young_  
_We're gonna die young_

_Let's make the most of the night like we're gonna die young_

The music died away, quickly replaced by a male voice.

I have to say that song's pretty much become my theme song lately. With all the crazy things that have been happening in my life and town, I've learned that you can never tell when your time is going to come. You just have to live your life while you can.

Moving on from that morbid thought,

a laugh is heard._This song is dedicated to the beautiful girl that I would totally fall apart without. Hope you're listening because I wanna make you feel wanted._

New music starts.

_You know I'd fall apart without you  
I don't know how you do what you do  
'Cause everything that don't make sense about me  
It makes sense when I'm with you_

_Like everything that's green, girl I need you_  
_But it's more than one and one makes two_  
_So put aside the math and the logic of it_  
_You gotta know you're wanted too_

_'Cause I wanna wrap you up_  
_Wanna kiss your lips_  
_I wanna make you feel wanted_  
_And I wanna call you mine_  
_Wanna hold your hand forever_  
_And never let you forget it_

_Yeah I, I wanna make you feel wanted..._

"Did you hear that! He was totally just talking to me right now!"

Paulina and the crowd of girls around her squealed as the black haired Latina clutched her phone, which had been playing the radio broadcast for all to hear, to her chest.

"Oh please," Sam said as we passed the crowd of screaming girls. "Only you could delude yourself into thinking a DJ is automatically talking about you."

All the girl's immediately stopped and Paulina glared at Sam. "Of course he was talking about me. I'm the prettiest girl in school," Paulina said, as if that was the answer to everything.

"She's got a point Paulina," Valerie said, walking up. "No one even knows who DJ P is, let alone where he lives. He might not even know who you are."

Paulina glared at Sam and Valerie before saying "Losers" and walking away, her crowd of followers right behind her.

Valerie shook her head and walked away with a small wave. I returned the wave before walking with Sam and Tucker through the small crowd of students that were still lingering in the hallways and left the school.

"So you guys want to go hang out at Nasty Burger?" Tucker asked.

"Sorry, I've got chores. Maybe next time," I said as I started walking towards home. "I'll call you guys later."

"See you, Danny," Tucker and Sam yelled after me.

* * *

I slipped into the chair at my desk and grabbed the headset next to my computer. After putting on the headset, I turned off the auto play.

"I don't care if I can't understand most of what he says. Psy is still an awesome singer.

"Alright this next one goes out to my ex, who I saw freaking out about my show earlier. Sorry, but we are never getting back together, like ever."

I hit the button on the computer and the next song started up.

_I Remember when we broke up  
The first time  
Saying "This is it, I've had enough"  
Cause like  
We hadn't seen each other in a month  
When you, said you, "needed space"  
What?_

_Then you come around again and say_  
_Baby_  
_I miss you and I swear I'm gonna change_  
_Trust me_  
_Remember how that lasted for a day_  
_I say, "I hate you", we break up, you call me_  
_I love you_

_Oooh we called it off again last night_  
_But Oooh, this time_  
_I'm telling you, I'm telling you_

_We are never ever ever getting back together_  
_We are never ever ever getting back together_  
_You go talk to_  
_Your friends talk to_  
_My friends talk to me_  
_But we are never ever ever ever_  
_Getting back together_

_Like ever..._

I sat back and let the music play.

My thoughts floated back to Paulina again. I still couldn't believe how popular my show had gotten.

When I had started the show, it had just been for fun. My parents were fine with me using the equipment in the ops. center, as long as I didn't throw anymore parties, so I told myself that I might as well use it as a way to let off some steam since my life was absolutely insane thanks to the ghosts.

Now, six months later, I was the most popular show to listen to. Everyone in school listened to me, whether they admitted it or not (Tucker and I caught Sam listening to my auto play when we came to pick her up for ghost patrol a few weeks ago). However, it wasn't just about the popularity. If I wanted that, I would have told everyone who I was or I would spend time as Phantom.

No, now it was about having a place where I could be free to express myself without anyone, even Sam or Tucker, knowing. I could be DJ P, a play on my initials as Danny James Phantom. I didn't have to be Danny Fenton, the weakling nerd that was invisible, or Danny Phantom, the super hero that could actually turn invisible. I didn't even have to be the brave, fearless, and strong Danny I put up for my friends and Jazz.

Looking back, I guess Sam's idea to start a radio station was a lot better than I thought it was going to be.

.

* * *

**.  
**


	95. 21MB Best Laid Plans

**Inspired by the events in "Memory Blank". The entire first season and Danny didn't have his powers yet.**

**This is "Bitter Reunions" without Danny Phantom in it. Just because the expected foil isn't there doesn't mean a plan is good enough to work.**

* * *

**Best Laid Plans  
**

A "Memory Blank" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

The fire cracking behind the grate threw soft orange light through the otherwise dark room. Shadows softened on the edges, highlighting the coat of arms over the fireplace. Portraits stared with judgmental eyes, staring down at the man in the room. He sat in a green velvet wingback chair, his feet propped up on a matching ottoman. A glass of port filled one hand, light glinting through its purple-red depths.

Twenty years. Twenty years of waiting, planning... He couldn't believe he'd failed.

Vlad Masters stared into the deep ruby recesses of his glass and took a long, uncivilized pull. It didn't matter at the moment. Civilization was not something he'd been born into, was not something that came naturally, was not something he felt he needed to uphold right now. Not while the servants cleaned up the spectacularly destroyed first floor. Not while the architects argued over what to save and what to replace.

Not while he was still wallowing in the frustration, the shame, the _unfairness_ of it all. Twenty years of planning brought down by children. Children!

Vlad growled and took another long gulp of port. This was supposed to be a fine vintage but he couldn't taste it. Its luxury was wasted on him as he guzzled it like it were cheap vodka. He glared into his empty glass and reached to the table for the bottle.

Bah. Empty.

Vlad got up, his half-ghost physiology scrubbing the alcohol from his system far too quickly. He made his way over to the wall and threw open the doors to the liquor cabinet.

Hmmph. Vlad squinted through the darkness. Too dark. He willed his ghost eyes to manifest. Ah, there. He perused his collection before deciding on something for nostalgia's sake. He pulled the bottle of vodka from the depths of the cabinet and popped the cork.

Tonight was a night to get thoroughly sloshed. He meandered back to his chair, pulling swigs directly from the bottle.

It had been a perfect plan. Play nice and civilized until the reunion. Seduce the Fentons into lowering their guard. Make them believe that there was nothing to fear here. Then during the reunion he would strike. Possess Jack, force him to perform like a trained monkey. Use him as a flesh-suit while he wrecked the reunion and worked to destroy any credibility the huge oaf may once have had.

His dear, sweet Maddie had been the one to throw the first crippling blow. That RV was a menace, decked out in more weaponry than Vlad cared to remember. Of course none of the lasers hit their mark. The lightning just sort of tingled when it hit, Jack's jumpsuit being resistant and his own elemental affinity taking care of the rest. But that shot of ectoplasmic goo knocked him out of Jack and threw him against the wall.

It was just enough of a distraction for Jack to be dragged into the RV. They were about to get away when Vlad dove through, dragging Madeline with him as he went. Never again would he let her go, he said. Never again.

And he would have managed it, too. Jack leaped from the cap of the RV to follow them on foot, firing randomly with whatever ectogun he'd managed to pull out of that expansive bulk of his. Vlad shot back, toying with him for a few shots while Maddie struggled in his hold.

Through it all, he'd forgotten about the children. The boy Daniel decided to defend his parents, unlike the girl Jasmine who was off cowering somewhere no doubt. The boy was just as proficient with button-mashing as his idiot father but...

Vlad insisted it was a lucky shot. It had to have been. There was no other way he could have fallen to the same weapon twice. He was going to be washing green goo stains out of his cape for weeks. Jack caught Maddie as Vlad dropped her, as he was thrown back into the wall again. And then he was faced with two well-armed ghost hunters aiming rather large weapons at his head. It was all he could do to teleport out of there before they fired.

The scorch marks on the library floor attested to how close a call it had been.

It was so bad he couldn't even bring himself to act a good, civilized host and see his guests off.

Vlad upended the bottle, guzzling the cheap vodka. Its burn was comforting. He pulled off to gasp for breath, realizing he'd almost managed to drain the bottle already.

Impressive. He belched, putting a little bit of energy into it, just for show. A gout of flame spilled from his lips before vanishing in a puff. He giggled.

Enough obsessing over his failure. Tonight he was going to feel better. And then tomorrow he was going to come up with a new plan. If he was going to keep her then he needed to get her away from the rest of her family. Tomorrow he would set something up.

Tonight he was going to get dangerously drunk and try to set his breath on fire.

.

* * *

**((Episode 24: Reign Storm tonight at 7 pm and midnight EST. livestream/pieinthesky))  
**


	96. 24RS Family Secrets

**Inspired by "Reign Storm". Fentonworks has the ability to power a ghost portal, run the Ops Center, keep a bank of ectoweapons charged and ready, and can power a ghost shield strong enough to cover most of the town. "They just use the ghost portal" hurts me right in the Second Law.**

**Some alternate theories... just make sense.**

* * *

**Family Secrets**

A "Reign Storm" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

_._

Every family has its secrets. Every family tells lies to the outside world. Every family has those hidden truths communicated around the dinner table with a wink and a nod.

The Fentons had their secrets. The failed "swimming pool" in the backyard that dug far deeper than anyone expected. The thin lead sheeting rolled out in between the floors of the second story and the ceilings of the first. The unspoken ban on bedrooms on the first floor. Nobody even slept on the couch downstairs if they could help it. The men who would come by periodically on business, all of them introduced as "Uncle Frank". The strange shipments of materials, some of them made under armed guard. The rumors of Department of Energy loans numbering in the tens of millions of dollars. The huge power lines coming out of Fentonworks.

Yes, the Fentons had their secrets. Secrets that weren't held out of malice or out of spite but because nobody ever asked.

And the Fentons liked to keep it that way.

Samantha Manson stood in the Fenton's living room, ranting and raving in front of any audience she could find: the Fentons, Danny, and Tucker. She was deep into her newest fad, environmentalism. Eighth grade it was punk rock and vegan cooking, ninth it was gothic subculture and recyclovegetarianism, now in tenth grade it was extreme environmentalism. She was holding her parent's power bill and complaining about the sources used by Amity Park.

"But this!" she ranted. "Coal is bad, sure, but this! Did you know that Amity Park gets almost a third of their power from nuclear sources?"

Jack and Maddie gave each other a wry look.

"Yeah, and?" Danny asked.

"What 'and'? It's horrible! The mining is bad for water sources, the radiation is horrendous and the radioactive waste never goes away!"

"You see, this is what's wrong with policy nowadays," Maddie said.

"See?! You agree with me, don't you, Mrs. Fenton?"

"If you'd let me finish, I was going to say 'that's what's wrong with policy nowadays'," Maddie said, this time a little more forceful and looking a little less amused. "'People pay attention to what they hear on reactionary websites instead of real science'. Nuclear power isn't safe simply because most people don't think it's safe. It's like saying someone set themselves on fire using gasoline so that means we have to ban all cars."

Sam looked like she'd just been told all the black in the world was replaced by pink. "You... you... But... You can use nuclear reactors to make bombs! And they're huge and unsightly! And they meltdown and blow up and poison huge areas of land forever!"

Jack nearly threw himself off the couch when he heard the knock on the door. Something, anything to distract him. He threw open the door to see a man in a white suit with a orange hard hat that had NRC marked on the sides. "Frank, you're here! Just in time."

'Frank' looked disturbed. "Just in time?" he asked. "Why aren't the kids upstairs? What's going wrong?"

Jack pointed to the girl in black who was still ranting about how nuclear power would be the death of the world or something. "Social issue," he said.

Frank visibly relaxed. "Don't scare me like that, Mr. Fenton," he scolded. He came inside. "So what's the problem here?"

Sam held up her parent's power bill and pouted. Frank took a cursory glance and nodded. "It's an electricity bill," he observed. "A rather large one. Have you considered basic conservation?"

"Not that," she snarled. "Do you have any idea how dangerous nuclear reactors are?!"

"Little lady, it's my job to know how dangerous nuclear reactors are. And I can assure you the reactor you're referring to is one of the safest I've ever come across."

"Wait, what?" Sam was confused and more than a little skeptical. She didn't like how this guy was talking to her. She wasn't a child, dammit, she was 15 years old!

"Why, the 100MW thorium reactor I'm here to inspect," Frank said, perfectly cheerful. "It's about 200 feet below you right now. It provides about a third of your town's power, I believe. So, Dr. Fenton, anything I need to be concerned about before we go downstairs to check out the reactor?"

"The graphite core needs replacing," Maddie admitted. "But the city council doesn't want us to take the reactor offline until Spring. I think they've just gotten used to being able to use all that waste heat in the winter. We've done the calculations and have a couple simulations ready but we wanted your advice before making a decision. And while you're here you could do your quarterly inspection!"

"Of course, of course," Frank said as he was led off downstairs by the two elder Fentons. "But I am glad you called for another reason. The DOE wanted to use your design for-" The voices cut off abruptly as the lead-lined lab door closed behind them.

Sam looked dumbfounded and betrayed. She turned on Danny, eyes flashing.

Danny went ghost. "I'm going to go watch," he said, teeth bared in an attempt at an innocent grin. He phased down into the floor, following the subterranean elevator shaft down toward the reactor and its bank of turbines.

Sam turned her glare to Tucker. Tucker just shrugged.

Sam threw herself onto the couch and pouted.

.


	97. 7BR Report

**Last chance to sign up for the Secret Santa fanfiction exchange! :D  
**

* * *

**Report**

A "Bitter Reunions" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

_._

Agent H set his white mug on the white table, careful lest anything become white-stained-brown. Opening his briefings, the first article's author claimed to have witnessed an overshadowing at a class reunion. He snorted. He was accustomed to crack claims, but they never failed to entertain him. This particular article was from… Harry Chin… oh yes, the unfortunately named woman dismissed from her prestigious paper the minute she stood by her ridiculous claims in this very article.

He was laying it aside when a name near the bottom of the article caught his eye. A very familiar name.

Jack Fenton.

.

* * *

**Episode 25: Identity Crisis tonight at 7 pm and midnight EST. livestream/pieinthesky**


	98. 20CF Control

**Possibly my favorite drabble set I've written to-date. And you guys get it instead of Turning Pages. Lucky, lucky.  
**

* * *

**Genius**

A "Control Freak" fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

_._

Tucker was a genius, pure and simple.

There was no use denying it; he would make a comeback so brilliant you needed to wear sunglasses for days.

What could he say? He was just that good.

Most girls didn't see it, but if they were stupid enough to chase after Dash, he didn't want them anyway… even if they were cute.

Teachers didn't recognize it until he had enjoyed the company of the Cram-tastic Mach-5, but he'd always had it.

Telling Freakshow to lift his staff higher so it would be knocked out of his hand was mere child's play.

.

Tucker… wasn't a sports person.

His parents discovered from little league and local soccer teams that their son would never be a great athlete. He just wasn't built that way. Didn't have the coordination.

Brain-finger coordination was phenomenal, but hand-eye? Not really.

They tried, though; kept him through pewee football long enough to learn the basics of the game and he'd continued tossing around the pigskin with his dad every once in a while.

So when the staff came flying his way, he reached for it, thinking that for once, he could come through when his friends needed him.

Fumble.

.

* * *

**Episode 26: Fenton Menace? tonight at 7 pm and midnight EST. livestream/pieinthesky**


	99. CHAT Past the Point of No Return

**Written while listening to 'Music of the Night'. Inspired by something said at the livestream, during the Phantom of the Opera movie. This idea was brought up, and a few people liked it, so I figured I'd do the big turning point part. Not Pompous Pep-Vlad was Danny's mentor and friend, but no more. Danny's still 14 here. I tried to remember the dialogue as best I could, but I did have to change some to fit anyways.**

**Phantom of the Opera belongs to Andrew Lloyd Webber.  
**

* * *

**Past the Point of No Return**

A fanfiction that came out of chat / preshow

By crazypoetmonarch

* * *

_._

"You have a choice. Will you take it?" Danny swallowed, the low and formally soothing voice floating across the damp dungeon, tainted with the tightening tendrils of insanity. He pawed gently at his uniform, the slick hazmat slipping under his touch. Across the water, Vlad's face was pinched, horrid red eyes burning with dedication as he tugged on the rope.

"Danny!" His mother gasped, her soaked hair fluttering forward and leaving slick lines on her neck as it was pulled forward with a quiet 'crack' and a wince. Danny's heart skipped a beat, and his legs slowly melted together into a gently waving spectral tail as he glared at Vlad.

The man he'd formally trusted, nearly given his very being to. He had been a father, a teacher, but a demon who had turned his gift into a curse he tried to pull Danny into as well. The late nights play fighting, learning about different types of ghostly energy, just discussing things for the sake of hearing the other's voice... His bone white hair, his deep blue eyes... They had all changed, morphed into a monster that frightened Danny to his very core.

_Darkness stirs, and awakes imagination... Hear it, feel it, secretly possess you... Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind, in this darkness that you know you cannot fight...to the power of the silence of the night..._

"I might have once felt bad for you..." He told the man, whose blood red eyes narrowed in both confusion and sanity long lost. "Because I could relate... but this, seeing what you will do..." Danny raised his gloved hand, pointing at his mother, who was staring at her son with terror for him, and for herself. "Makes that pity turn to... _hate." _

"Danny, I'm sorry I-" Vlad's cape fluttered in the dank mildew air as he yanked the rope, choking off Maddie's words. His eyes were wild and he bared ghostly fangs at the boy, eyes glowing.

"Choose now, Daniel! Her life or your loyalty!" He paused for a second, before spitting out, "_This _is the point of no return!" Danny swallowed. He couldn't imagine having to spend the rest of his life in this darkness... with this man who had murdered so many to get to him... but what choice did he have? His heart started beating thrice-fold as his legs reappeared.

Vlad's eyes widened, his fingers loosening on the rope restraining Danny's mother. Danny saw the years of fear and rejection hidden behind those eyes. While he had gotten his powers through a blessed accident and put them to use protecting the people, earning their trust, Vlad had been long shunned by society, the child of a ghost and a human. The man had hidden underground, and when he had heard of another like him, younger and less experienced, he had leapt on the chance to be with the only other of his kind. Danny had only just seen the monster behind his mentor. The halfa teen let his fingers loosen in his sweaty palms.

"Oh Vlad..." He swallowed again, slowly stepping down off the stage and into the filthy water. Vlad's eyes were circles by now. "I'm sorry for all that has happened to you..." Vlad nearly dropped his rope. From his tense body position, shoulders hitched and legs locked, he obviously expected Danny to charge him. But, the boy only floated up so their eyes-green irises and red whites- were equal.

After a mere moment of hesitation, he wrapped his arms around the man and hugged him tightly. "I will be here, now and always." Vlad actually did drop the rope, and Maddie dropped with a heavy thud and a splash. Danny gripped the rough, wet fabric of Vlad's cape, his boots hovering around the man's knees. He squeezed his eyes shut, a tear slipping out of his eye and sliding down his tanned cheek unrestrained. Danny slipped a hand down, to intertwine with Vlad's-a gesture of peace and understanding. The younger one pulled his head back, but gripped Vlad's gloved fingers within his tightly while staring into Vlad's face. The man stared down at their hands together, a strangled sob slowly working it's way out of his throat. He pulled Danny closer into a hug, shoulders heaving. Danny curled his open palm up, fingertips touching his wrist, before relaxing it again. Suddenly, Vlad jerked back, looking straight into Danny's eyes.

"Go. Take her. Leave this place." Danny blinked.

"What? But-"

"GO! They'll find you here... Leave me... Take Maddie. You... You two will need each other. I... I have all I need." He gave Danny one last glance, before flying over to the stage. His back was to Danny, but the careful way he ran his fingers over the wind-up badger with cymbals showed he was still in control of himself. Danny waded over to his mother, taking one last look back at his former guide, his guardian... And phased them both through the gate.

Vlad's wracked sobs echoed throughout the waterway as Danny flew his mother to safety, using all of his willpower to not look back at his lost mentor and friend.

.

* * *

.


	100. 32BM Together

**IMPORTANT NOTE: Okay, first I must apologize for dropping the ball on Through Danny Phantom's updates. I have literally been in the car for ten hours for each of the past few Fridays and wasn't able to get out a notice about what was playing when. But unless otherwise stated, there WILL be a stream every Friday night at 7 pm and midnight EST with a preshow starting at 5:20 and 10:20, so feel free to show up to the chat even if I (or Tanger) don't get the word out. And don't forget that we have a forum. And a DeviantArt group. And that I can't write all of the chapters to this collection myself. :D  
**

* * *

**Together**

A _Beauty Marked_ fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

_._

Sam… was gone. Vanished, kidnapped, abducted.

Frankly, Danny wasn't sure what to do. He'd never been in this position before. Been the hero, yes, but never like this. Never with _her_.

Any gentlemanly gesture had been denied, any offer of protection an offense against her (quite capable) abilities. Her famous streak of independence sometimes bordered on ultra- feminism.

So it took longer than it should have to register what he needed to do now. But then he turned to see Tucker at his side, face sporting identical determination.

"So…" Tucker said.

"Yeah," Danny responded. "We'll go to get her…"

"Together."

.

* * *

**Congratulations. You have just witnessed my ultra geeky goal (held since at least 3rd grade) to write a story in which I have the phrase 'to get her' and 'together' in tandem, since they're the same minus the spaces. Geekiness for the win! XD**


	101. 32BM Stripped of Her Title

**After "Beauty Marked". Beauty pageants have very strict rules concerning the conduct of their entrants.**

* * *

**Stripped of Her Title  
**

A _Beauty Marked_ fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

_._

"Whaddaya mean banned?!"

Mr. Lancer glared at the girl standing in front of his desk. "You misrepresented yourself and your reasons for entering the contest," he said. "That is why you're being stripped of your crown and banned from any and all beauty pageants put on by this school!"

Sam stood rooted to the spot, growling. The only reason the pageant was disrupted was because of those damned ghosts! This was all Dora's fault! "But but..."

Lancer was unamused at her attempts to explain. It didn't help that she couldn't mention ghosts or Dora or certainly not dragons. The whole pageant was nothing but a front to find mindless, featureless, spineless girls to be molded into princesses at the whims of an ancient scaly terror! So why was she so disappointed about losing her crown? Hadn't she signed up to disrupt the pageant anyway?

Her shoulders slumped and she handed over the tiara. It was meaningless, a token of conformity and physical beauty. So why did giving it up hurt so much? Was it knowing that the crown would go to runner-up Star?

Sam shook off the feeling and stormed out of Mr. Lancer's office. It didn't matter. He could keep the stupid crown anyway. The whole thing was stupid. Pageants were stupid.

If she repeated it often enough she might stop feeling so angry about giving up her crown.

.


	102. 25IC Miscalculation

**After "Identity Crisis". For a moment Jack saw two Dannys and questioned everything. And then the house walked off and the moment was broken. But that doesn't mean it had to stay broken...**

* * *

**Miscalculations  
**

An _Identity Crisis_ fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

_._

Their house was walking away. The ghost was literally walking away with the entirety of their house from the ground floor up. That Phantom ghost seemed to be trying to stop it.

And so was the second one. There was a flash of light and then one was gone. Instead his son stood there.

"The whole time," Danny mocked. "I've been this way the whole damned time."

Jack woke up with a jolt. Maddie mumbled something about snoring and rolled over in her sleep. The gentle lapping waves of the lake on the shore calmed him, politely informed him that he still had to find a way to get Fentonworks back on its foundation.

The dreams weren't going away. He had a hard time remembering exactly what happened; he'd been distracted by the ghost walking off with their house. But there'd been a flash of light as Phantom ran out of the house with them to see another Phantom in the street. A double-take and then Phantom was no longer behind them. Instead their son stood there, blinking up at him with those sleepy eyes under long, shaggy hair. When had Danny found time to grow out his hair? And why did he get it cut the moment the ghost was gone?

Jack got up. He wasn't going to be able to get any more sleep tonight. He went down to the kitchen. He pulled open the heavy lead-lined door and stepped down, faceplanting on dark wet sand. Right. The lab was still with the foundation of the house. He brushed himself off, climbed back into the kitchen, and instead went outside to the assault vehicle. It felt weird to have to drive to his own lab.

It was an old proof, one he'd done almost twenty years ago. When Vlad disappeared Jack had needed something to assuage his own guilt. He found it buried in math and physics, a mathematical proof concerning the effects of ectoplasmic exposure in a human being. Two decades ago it had been enough, had proven to him once and for all that Vlad was okay, that there would be no ill effects. After all, math doesn't lie.

Except when it did.

Jack looked through pages upon pages of proofs until the light of day brightened around him. The sound of birds and people and gawkers tossing pebbles into the giant hole didn't distract him. Not even when he started seeing two of everything and fell asleep, head down on his folded arms.

His sleep was as uneasy as before. But this time there was more than mere suspicion.

His math was wrong.

*****

In the end it was decided that they would hold this meeting in the house. Although cooking on a propane stove and running everything off of a generator was annoying it did mean the lab and most of their equipment was across town. Hopefully that little fact would put their guest at ease.

He arrived three minutes late, an oddity for him. Vlad Masters was never late.

"To what do I owe this... oddest of circumstances?" Vlad asked once they were settled. Tea and cookies were laid out on the coffee table, the windows of Fentonworks overlooking the lapping waves. "What on earth happened to your house?"

Maddie poured the tea for the three of them, allowing Jack to explain. "It was a ghost!" Jack crowed. "A ghost picked up our house and walked off with it! We still haven't figured out how we're gonna get it put back on its foundation. But don't you worry, Vladdie, we'll have it all put back together soon enough."

Vlad made a noncommittal noise as he suffered through small talk and the distinct sense that something wasn't being said. Perhaps it had something to do with the wary looks he was getting from Maddie, the undercurrent of sadness from Jack.

Jack ran out of small talk rather quickly. Vlad didn't fish so it wasn't a big draw that Jack could cast off from his front porch. Vlad wasn't offering in the slightest to help them move the house back onto its foundation. If he thought about it, Jack could almost pretend that there was nothing sinister going on here, nothing lurking under the surface. Just two distanced friends trying to rekindle the good old days. But all too soon it had to end. It always had to end.

"So I was going over some old calculations of mine," Jack said. "About the portal accident."

Vlad froze, teacup halfway to his lips. A moment of fear and terrible pain flashed through his eyes before it was covered up by distance and disdain. For once Jack allowed himself to see it, wondered how many times he'd seen it and dismissed it before.

"Something happened to you," Jack said. "Something serious. Something I never realized because my math was wrong. It was always wrong, Vlad, and I'm so sor-"

"Don't you dare apologize," Vlad snarled. "After what you did to me, abandoning me to my fate, you dare try to apologize?! You don't have the right!" As he fumed the teacup in his hand cracked then shattered. Every smooth exhale tasted like ozone.

Jack looked at the floor. He was a terrible friend. If only his math had been right then he wouldn't have allowed himself to get so wrapped up in his own life. He wouldn't have just assumed that Vlad was okay and moving on and happy.

Vlad pinched the bridge of his nose, keeping his eyes closed so they didn't glow too red. He didn't even look up as Maddie handed him another cup, relying on the sound of nervous shaking to guide his hand. "Why bring this up now?" he asked, his voice wary and oh so tired.

Maddie took a deep breath to steady herself. "We think it's happened again," she said. "Danny. There's been no sign of ectoacne but there's other... He was in two places at once, he disappears, there are strange lights around him, I don't know how to really explain..." She watched Vlad carefully, waiting for his reaction. Surprise, shock, pity, anything but this utter resignation. "You knew," she realized.

"You knew?!" Jack demanded. "When!"

Vlad sighed. "Ever since I met him," he admitted. The Fentons seemed to have figured it out on their own so any agreement he'd made with the boy was quite null and void. At least they showed no sign of knowing any actual secret identities. "The moment I saw him I knew he was... like me. It's a... I don't know, a sense. Like the sense you get when you know you're being stared at. I can't explain it any better than that."

"Does he know?" Maddie asked. "About you?"

"Yes. Although he and I didn't get off on quite the right foot once I'd... formally introduced myself properly. He doesn't seem to realize..." Vlad sighed and took a sip of tea. "I don't want him to be alone like I was. And he will be. He's not human anymore, not that he realizes it. People sound, feel different than they used to. Everything I've done, Madeline, was to keep him from having to be alone." He looked her in the eyes and willed her to believe him. Believe his words... Believe the lie...

Jack looked confused, glancing back and forth between Vlad and Maddie. "Mads?"

"You never told him, did you." Vlad did not phrase it as a question. Maddie shook her head 'no'. Vlad took a deep breath and told a story. "The Dalv group is one of my endeavors. I invited Daniel and Maddie out so I could try again with Daniel. Offer him a place with me. Train him in what powers he has now and will develop eventually so he doesn't accidentally kill anyone like I... Well. The reunion taught me that Daniel would not leave the both of you. I thought perhaps he might leave one and offered Maddie a place with me."

Jack figured through the big words to what Vlad was saying. "You... tried to get my wife to stay with you... so Danny wouldn't be lonely?" He gave Vlad a confused, unimpressed, insulted look. "That's one of the oddest things I've ever heard."

"Wait, what do you mean 'kill'?" Maddie asked.

Vlad sighed, staring into his tea. He put the saucer down and wrapped both hands around the cup. "They're not easy to control the first few years," Vlad said. He concentrated, focusing his ghost powers into his hands. The tea began to boil as Jack and Maddie looked on in fascination. "Random outbursts are to be expected. Admittedly he's not locked away in a hospital with nurses who might have deserved what happened to them. But how much control do fourteen year old boys really display?" Vlad's eyes glowed red as he pushed into the cup. The tea vaporized as the ceramic shattered. He shook his hands, disrupting their power and easing the tingling. "I should probably stop trying to blow up your crockery."

Jack stared. He'd known his math was wrong but this wrong? This was horrifying! No wonder Vlad lived alone in that big old castle, he probably didn't feel safe with anyone else around! And Danny's friends... How much danger were they in? And what about them? Maddie and Jazz and himself? Jack was perfectly willing to take on the risk for himself and he was sure Maddie was too but they could not, **would not** ask Jazz to take on that same risk. Not when she had her whole life ahead of her. Danny needed to be kept safe and so did everyone around him. At least until he could control himself.

The idea was quick to form but Jack was slow to accept it. Could they do it? Could they really do this to him? To themselves? Jack looked at his friend as he rubbed his hands like they ached. Made sense, exploding teacups with his bare hands probably hurt.

Vlad was a trusted friend. They'd known each other forever, for as long as Jack could remember. If he couldn't trust his friend then who could he trust?

Jack knew he would hate himself for saying it. That he and Maddie wouldn't sleep for weeks after this was over. But if Danny was as dangerous as Vlad seemed to be implying... It had to be done. "If you'd be willing, Vlad, I have an idea."

*****

"What?!"

"Danny, please!" Jack said, trying to reason with the boy.

"You—you want to **give** me to that... that fruitloop?! You can't make me! He's evil!"

"Daniel James Fenton, stop it!" Maddie scolded. "We know about Vlad! And we know about you! We talked it over with him long and hard, this is the best solution!"

"For who?! Him? Geez, Mom, what lies did he feed you?"

"ENOUGH!" Jack bellowed. His shout sent the whole kitchen into silence. "Danny, I know you don't want to go. But it's not forever. We'll come to visit you during the holidays and as often as Vlad thinks is safe. Meanwhile you'll be getting training concerning your powers and he's even promised to keep up with your schooling. It's already all set up. And then when you have your powers under control you can come back to live with us or move out or whatever you want to do. You could even stay with Vlad if you wanted to." Jack sighed, his wavering voice not helping his case. He was going to miss seeing Danny rushing around every morning, miss his inventions going off randomly around him, although that should have been a clue from day one. He was even going to miss Danny's little friends always underfoot.

But it wasn't forever.

It would be easier to believe if he ignored the frantic plea in his son's voice. Or the unabashed triumph he'd seen in Vlad's blood red eyes.

.

* * *

**Stream of The Mummy (5:20 and 10:20) and King Tuck (7 and midnight) EST at livestream /pieinthesky**


	103. 30FWD A Broken Family

**Because sometimes the ending isn't happy, and implosions hurt more than they have any right to.**

* * *

**A Broken Family  
**

A "_Flirting With Disaster_" fic

By PuppetMaster55

* * *

_._

She didn't go back.

It wasn't that she couldn't, just that she didn't want to. After several agonizing weeks of being kept in her father's view at all times (to the point where he'd almost pulled her from her school in his raid against her ghost-hunting activities), with the majority of that time with her arm in a sling and bandaging wrapped around her bruised and cracked ribs to keep them from becoming broken, she was finally (_finally!_) able to fight ghosts again. Finally able to stop the Phantom ghost-thief from breaking into Axiom Labs and wreaking everything in sight (_again_, she bitterly added in her mind). Only...

She'd left him. Had gone off into space (well, technically, into orbit, but who cared about the semantics) chasing after the Phantom, who had broken into Axiom (again), had wrecked the place (again), and made off with highly expensive and experimental machinery (agai– wait, that one might be a first). She knew what would happen if her dad's boss found out about the break-in and theft, and she'd only recently gotten used to this new life out in Elmerton. They were already living in the slums; if there was going to be another lawsuit that sent them deeper into ruin... She couldn't think about that.

But she'd left him. She'd left him alone, and now that she was back on solid ground, she hadn't gone back to him. Because she knew what he would say. What he would be.

She'd disappointed her father once, when he'd learned that _she_ was the Huntress during the invasion of the Ghost King. She didn't want to see that same disappointment on his face again.

So she'd gone to the school, politely withdrawing (forging her father's signature with the help of the nanobots that made up her suit and weaponry), before running into Danny. He'd never been the brightest crayon in the box (heck, if he'd been more athletic in build, Danny would fit right in with some of the brainier jocks), but she'd been able to fool him enough with a half-truth: that their lives just couldn't handle the two of them hooking up, and it would be better if they just put their relationship on the back-burner indefinitely. She knew that if something didn't happen soon enough, she'd lose him to that recyclo-vegan goth friend of his, Sam, but that was okay. Valerie had a knack for telling who would work as a couple and who wouldn't (something that Paulina had once coveted, back when she was an A-Lister), and the combination of Danny and Sam was one that would never last. Danny was too much of a free spirit to be held down by a nonconformist like Sam; she was too headstrong to let Danny do as he pleased (already she was restricting him, and they weren't even a thing yet!).

But she'd withdrawn from school, before going and signing more hours at the newly-rebuilt Nasty Burger. When she saw a painfully-familiar face come in through the front asking for her, Valerie had slipped out the back. He hadn't even seen her and already she could hear the disappointment (and fear and worry, which made her feel even guiltier) in his voice.

Valerie, once she knew where her father was, had gone back to their (his, no longer hers anymore) apartment to fill a backpack with enough food and clothes to survive until she could find her own place.

"Valerie."

She stiffened, freezing in the act of stuffing another shirt in the backpack, at the sheer _heartbroken-ness_ that hung in the air, tainting it with a guilty stink worse than anything she'd ever been subjected to.

"Dad." Dad. Not Daddy. Not anymore. This, what she was doing... sentimentality and affection could wait. Now was the time to draw on everything she'd learned through ghost hunting; emotions clouded judgment, and she _needed_ her judgment to not be clouded. She needed a clean break, one with no regrets – but there _would_ be regret, and unbelievable amounts of guilt that would drag her down to her lowest and–

No. No emotions, clear judgment, and as few regrets as possible.

Big, strong arms wrapped around her, pulling her tight (too tight) against her father. Even though the hold was suffocating, Valerie could feel the arms shivering, shoulders quaking in repressed tears and fear. "You're back."

I just came to get my stuff." This _hurt_, because as much as he wanted her to stay, she couldn't. Staying meant a lifetime of fighting every day to keep what little they had left, meant watching as more of her life was lost. Already she'd had to give up the house she'd grown up in; without all those little nooks and crannies, without the familiar smell of burning wood from the fireplace that she woke up to every morning in the winter, without those little reminders... Valerie was starting to forget her mother. She'd had to give up a lifetime of memories because of that lawsuit, and she couldn't afford to lose what few memories had begun to build up here.

"Don't." It was a plea; she knew it as well as he did. But it was one that she couldn't follow through with. She pulled out of the embrace, being careful not to look. Once she did, she wouldn't be able to go. "Please."

"I have to." As excuses came, that was the closest to the truth that she was willing to go. "We've already lost so much. I don't want to lose everything we've got."

"We're not going to lose everything." It was a lie, one they both knew had been said before.

"That's what you said the last time this happened, and look what happened!" She couldn't help the bitterness in her voice. "We lost our house!"

"It was just a house, Valerie..."

"No it wasn't!" The words came out in a snarl, and she wasn't sorry at how much it hurt to have him not feel as bad as she did. "It was where I took my first steps, and we spent those winter nights sitting in front of the fireplace talking about everything over a warm cup of cocoa, and... it's where Mom..." She trailed off, the words unable to form. "I just... it feels like we're forgetting she was ever there. Like _I'm_ forgetting she was ever there."

"That's not true!"

"Yes it is!" She could feel the sting of tears at the edge of her vision, and knew that she'd stayed too long. Valerie stuffed the shirt into her backpack, closing it enough that everything wouldn't fall out as she moved towards the window. "I need to go."

"You're not leaving!" And he was in front of her, arms reaching out to grip her shoulders, forcing her to look, but she wouldn't. "You're not hunting ghosts anymore! It's too dangerous and..." His voice dropped down from the near-shout it had been before. "And I don't want to lose you too."

She ducked out of her father's grip, the tears staining her face as she jumped onto the windowsill. Already she could feel the nanobots forming into her new suit.

"I'm sorry." It was the only thing she could say, and she already felt her throat tighten out of the tears that had yet to be shed.

"Just... come back." He still wasn't accepting what she was doing. That her leaving him was so that they wouldn't have to be separated when the worst hit. That she was sparing the both of them from having to lose the other for good later on. "Don't ruin your life hunting ghosts."

"I'm sorry." The words were repeated, and she jumped off the ledge, out into the unknown.

.

* * *

**Stream of *insert preshow here* (5:20 and 10:20) and episode 34: Masters of All Time (7 and midnight) EST at livestream /pieinthesky**


	104. 14PE Amity Park: A Nice Place To Live

_A/N: Just a silly piece inspired by pretty much the entire first half of the first season. Can you spot all the references? _

* * *

**Amity Park: A Nice Place To Live**

A "Public Enemies" Fanfiction

By Avearia

* * *

.

Strange things had been happening in Amity Park for quite some time now.

To the casual observer, nothing seemed particularly out of place. Amity Park truly was "a nice place to live," as the billboards boasted—a quaint town, a low crime rate, an excellent community. If a person was skeptical enough, they could go for days and weeks living a normal life.

But for the more observant half of the population, Amity was no walk in the park. Amity had always been an odd little town, of course, but in the past year, it had become downright _weird. _

The oddities started as isolated incidents, but soon grew to unmanageable proportions.

A man wearing a mechanical flying suit had been spotted repeatedly at various locations, including downtown newsstands, the local library, and the zoo.

Insurance reps received a jump in baffling thefts, disappearances, and injuries. Insurance companies had to start paying out to people whose stuff just "went missing" despite being in a locked and undisturbed safe or a secure house.

Public property damage went through the roof. Vandals seemed to wreck whole streets and buildings overnight. Windows were broken. Holes appeared in the pavement. Whole warehouses of boxes just _vanished_.

The police were at their wits end. Some days it was normal; pulling over speeders, investigating robberies. Other days, it was about a glowing ninja who wrecked the mall, or that someone snuck into the zoo, damaged the observatory, released the gorilla, and tied up the jaguar.

The most baffling case came in the form of a fender-bender. A red Volkswagen reportedly bumped into the local weatherman's car as it _flew _off during rush hour. The first cop laughed it off until the next day, when Old Man Wilkinson came by to report that a red Volkswagen was lodged in the upper reaches of his corn silo.

Several people were admitted to the hospital with odd, green burns and tales of delusions. Psychologists had their hands full with new patients. Repeated mass hallucinations—(giant meat monsters, green glowing bulldogs, a river of cotton candy, giant wasps, three-story robots)—caused the city to check and re-check the quality of its water supply.

UFO sightings were up. People all over the city spotted green lights zig-zagging across the sky.

A student at the local high school submitted a YouTube video of a tray floating across the cafeteria, unmanned, to the front of the line—right before chaos broke out.

A few photos surfaced of what appeared to be a woman in red flying around on a jet-sled through Amity. After being laughed off as photoshopped, the pictures were later confirmed by security camera footage.

An apartment owner complained about a motorcycle driving up the side of his building. He had the tire treads on the siding to prove it.

Their newspapers were starting to read like tabloids.

No one knew how to explain these mysterious oddities. Police, scientists, doctors, journalists, and many others all scrambled for answers, but no explanation was ever found. They were at their wits' end.

Amity Park's weirdness was beyond comprehension, and it was starting to drive them _nuts._

The day of the ghost invasion, everyone seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Rather than turning their world upside down, the news set the residents of Amity Park at ease.

Ghosts!

Finally, the world was starting to make sense.

* * *

_And there was one journalist named Harriet Chin, who, after getting fired from her job (thanks, Jack) moved to Amity Park to start a new life. She wasn't content to sit back and scratch her head at the oddities or blow them off like a skeptic. Her inner journalist was begging to uncover the mystery; begging to understand._

_So she dug deeper. Investigated every oddity as far as she could go. Even drew some of her own conclusions, though she never shared them—who would believe her anyway?_

_Each search turned up empty, left her without answers or evidence or proof. But there was one thing she discovered. At each scene, if she dug deep enough for answers, there was always one constant. One certainty. _

_Whenever it happened, wherever it was, she could always find a silver-haired boy present at the center of the chaos. _

.

_(After the invasion, she was promoted.) _


	105. 37KS Dad

_Had this one on ice for a while. Because we all know what really happened in that lab..._

* * *

**Dad**

A "Kindred Spirits" Fanfiction

By PuppetMaster55

* * *

.

"_Prime clone destabilized, lambchop. Degeneration happening, sweetness._"

Awareness came suddenly, the whole of existence coming down upon his body like an avalanche. He awoke with a gasp, feeling so immeasurably, impossibly _alive_, and wanted to do many things, but had no idea where to start. There was a whole entire world out there, and he couldn't wait to experience them with his family. There was a kind of impatient, bubbling ball of warmth building in his chest that made him feel... eager? Yes, eager. Eager to go out and live.

He opened his eyes, and it was the sight of worried, _scared_ eyes of his father that first told him something wasn't right. Was wrong.

The warm ball vanished suddenly, leaving a freezing, gaping hole that dropped down below where his heart was, settling in his stomach where it acted like a gaping, starving chasm, consuming all the warmth of his body. It was... disappointment? Yes, disappointment.

He had disappointed his father. His life was over. There was nothing more for him to live for.

When the worry and fear in his father's eyes didn't go away, but morphed into something different, more tangible, that he understood. His father wasn't disappointed, but... concerned? Yes, concerned.

Dad was concerned for his son.

But why?

He reached a hand out, hoping to pull his dad into a hug, to reassure him that everything was okay, that _he_ was okay, and everything was _absolutely perfect_, only to find that his entire body was sizzling, bubbling and liquifying into glowing green goop. His gaze switched from his melting hand to his father, and an emotion he had no trouble identifying welled up from within, vibrating every molecule of his body with pure, raw _life_ – panic.

He was dying.

He was dying, and would never get to experience the warmth of the sun upon him; the chill of the wind as it blew against his skin; the taste of food, or all the scents the world had to offer. To know the world through experience, not just know everything as a concept.

He was dying without having ever lived.

The hand reached out, desperate and quivering, even as it started to sizzle and bubble a viscous green goo, towards his only family. A plea. For help. For life.

A gasp escaped his lips as the rest of his body fell prey to this goo, and he tried, desperately, to say something, anything, to his father – that everything would be okay, that there had to be a cure, even hearing his father say that he loved–


	106. 34MOAT Moving On

_For "Masters of All Time". In the alternate timeline Vlad the Dairy King marries his college sweetheart. But it wasn't the fairytale romance everyone thought it was. No... It was nowhere near fairytale._

* * *

**Moving On  
**

A "Masters of All Time" Fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

The setting was perfect. Vlad had the library all set up for her, a fire in the fireplace, the big bearskin rug thrown over the stone floor in front of it, a bottle of champagne in a bucket of ice, a nice little romantic dessert… It was perfect. Perfect enough for the little box in his pocket.

Maddie sat next to him, his arms wrapped around her, her champagne flute dangling from her fingers. But there was something missing. Someone.

"I'm worried about Jack," she said, staring into the fire. Its glow reminded her so much of the glow of his eyes after the accident, after the protoportal exploded in his face.

Vlad was halfway to reaching for the little box in his pocket when she spoke. His hand dropped away and he just barely kept from growling in frustration. "I know you are, my dear," he said. "But we can't keep living in the past like this. We have to move on, for ourselves."

Maddie sighed.

"I'll tell you what," he offered. "I'll speak to him for you. See… what his feelings are on the matter. Would that satisfy you?"

Maddie nodded, her eyes lighting up in hope.

Vlad smiled, silently cursing the man who made her smile like that. Jack wasn't even here and he still held sway over her heart like this. This… would not stand. He guzzled his champagne, the romantic mood broken. The ring would wait for another day.

*****

"She hates you, Jack," Vlad said. He stood in the middle of the brownstone brick building that Jack had haunted until the owner fled. "Or, at least, ghosts, anyway. She blames herself for what happened to you. I don't think she could face you if she knew what really happened to you."

Jack paced the room, growling and stomping. He raised his hand and shot an ectoblast into the wall, blasting a familiar and growing burn spot.

Vlad made a show of jumping in shock, fear lurking in every movement he made. "Jack, please!"

Jack turned to look at his friend, his only friend now that he'd been transformed into this horrible half-ghost… _thing_… The fear in Vlad's stance threw Jack out of his ghost form, back into the human form he once felt was his. "Vladdy, I'm sorry," he said. "I—I just… I get so angry like this… I don't know how to control myself."

Vlad nodded.

"I miss her," Jack said.

"I know, my friend," Vlad said. "We miss you too. The human you. The you you used to be. I accept you like this but… But Maddie… She's a ghost hunter, Jack. I've tried but she won't let it go."

Jack slumped onto the half-blasted couch. "You say you accept me and yet you're afraid of me too," he said. "I… I don't know, V-man. I think… I don't know, I think I need to find some way to purge this ghost half from me. I can't live like this."

"I understand," Vlad said.

"I just… I know it's a lot to hope that she'll wait for me but… Will you at least tell her that I'm trying? That I'll wait for her?"

"Of course."

Jack broke into a blinding grin.

And Vlad knew what he had to do.

*****

"He hates you," Vlad said.

Maddie looked down at her hands. She sighed. "Somehow… I expected that," she said, tears welling up in her eyes. "I knew it was too much to hope that he might forgive me."

Vlad grasped her hands in his own. "We have to move on, my dear," he said. "We can't keep living like this, hoping that he'll come to his senses. His ire has only grown over these past few years. I don't expect it to cool for a long time, if ever. What happened to him… Maddie, if it were me I don't know if I could ever forgive. I don't know if you could ever forgive."

"It was an accident," she whispered.

"Maddie, you were the one to check his math," Vlad said. "You found the errors too late. He may have pressed the button but you were the only one who could have stopped him. He knows this. Maddie, please."

Maddie sighed. "What do we do now?" she asked.

"We move on," Vlad said. "And… if you'd have me… We could move on together."

"What?"

Vlad went down onto one knee before her and pulled the box out of his pocket. He opened it to show the diamond ring. "Madeline Walker, will you marry me?"

Maddie looked at the ring, large and shining in his hand. She thought to the man who she loved, the one who hated her for what she'd done to him. If he couldn't realize that she'd love him no matter what happened…

Then he didn't deserve her.

She had to move on.

She had to.

"Yes."

.

* * *

**In honor of Valentine's Day, tonight's episode is Double Cross My Heart at 7pm and midnight EST. livestream / pieinthesky**


	107. DD A Best Friend's Duty

_For "Doctor's Disorders". Danny didn't know Tucker hated hospitals yet somehow Sam knew? It makes no sense. Unless..._

* * *

**A Best Friend's Duty  
**

A "Doctor's Disorders" Fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

Five year old Tucker Foley stood outside the brightly lit room. The whole place stank, smelled like pain and stinging alcohol and there were people everywhere and needles and latex... He looked up at his mother. She gave him a wan smile, looked into the room, then looked back at Tucker.

"You know we don't have to go in there," she said.

Tucker sniffed and wiped away a tear. All he had to do was nod and she would take him away from here, away from the stink and the people and the leering faceless doctors hiding behind their masks like they were all planning something, something evil, painful, always watching...

"Danny will be just fine," she assured. "He'll be home tomorrow and then you can see him there."

Tucker glanced back at the room and the bright white, the bright and shining and and fake bright white stinging his eyes and washing away all color. His friend Danny was in there. He wouldn't let Danny be alone through this. Tucker let go of his mother's hand and braved the hospital room to make sure Danny didn't have to suffer through his broken arm alone.

*****

Nine year old Tucker Foley sat in the waiting room of the ER. It was horrible out here, stained gray carpet filled with the stink of sickness and flu and people all around him, sick people, coughing people, dull-looking people... His mother was there, a book in her hands that she just couldn't seem to focus on.

"You know we don't have to stay if you don't want to," she said.

The ER doors slammed open and a guy was rushed in screaming, blood falling from his wounds. The motorcycle helmet fell from his head as his two friends carried him between them, shouted for a doctor. The nurses came running out, masks hiding their faces as they took the guy in. His friends were trapped out in the waiting room while the screaming faded away.

Tucker had to stay just like they had to stay. No matter how terrifying the hospital was, he had to stay.

The doors to the ER opened. Tucker's face broke into a blinding grin as Danny came walking out, slow and groggy, led by his mother. A big patch of hair was shaved off of Danny's head and the nurse was giving all sorts of instructions to Maddie that Tucker didn't pay any attention to.

Tucker ran over to Danny. He held his friend up as Danny's knees seemed weak. He didn't know what the word 'concussion' meant, only that their mothers had said that if either of them ever rode their bikes without helmets again they'd be grounded forever.

*****

Fourteen year old Tucker Foley sat outside the hospital room. The hallway was empty of anyone who cared, only people rushing this way and that. Doctors with masks, nurses with carts of needles, people dressed like mental patients in blue jackets asking if he needed anything... The stink was oppressive, pounding against his sinuses the stench of alcohol, coffee, and exhaustion. His friend Sam was there.

"I'm terrified of hospitals," he admitted.

"Then why are you here?" Sam asked.

Maddie stuck her head out into the corridor and waved them inside.

"Because I have to be," Tucker said.

Sam nodded. "I know what you mean."

Tucker stayed quiet. She didn't know what he meant. Sure, the accident was probably her fault, she'd been the one to suggest Danny go in the portal and poke around just so she could get a few photos. But that's not why he had to be here. It was because...

Because it was Danny. Because Danny always got hurt. And because Tucker always needed to make sure Danny was okay. Even more than he needed to not be here, he needed to make sure Danny was okay. Sam didn't understand that. She probably never would.

Tucker grinned when he saw Danny drag himself into a sitting position. Danny grinned right back.

Danny didn't know that Tucker hated hospitals. And if Tucker had any say, he never would. Danny had it hard enough, always being the one stuck in the hospital. He didn't need to worry about Tucker on top of it. All he needed to know was that Tucker would always be there.

.

* * *

**Stream tonight at 7pm and midnight EST. livestream / pieinthesky. I think it will be a big one today, either Reality Trip or The Ultimate Enemy! So be there! :D  
**


	108. 21MB Eco-Terrorism

_._

* * *

**Eco-Terrorism  
**

A "Memory Blank" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Sam dropped her tray on the table. "I know opposable thumbs are an exciting evolutionary step but you'd type much faster using ten fingers. Why don't you get a lap top?"

"It's a well known phenomenon. Expensive breakable things are a magnet for trouble. How long do you think a lap top would last? Besides, this is portable, concealable, and most importantly, I know every circuit and bit inside. Let's just say I have no compunctions about voiding the factory warranty. Sweet Veronica has more 'enhancements' than a Hollywood actress.

Tucker rubbed it against his cheek, partly in self appreciation of his own genius but mostly because it annoyed Sam. Sam's lip curled in disgust.

Sam turned her attention to the notebook Danny was bent over. "So what is this all about?

"We're trying to match up the monsters, the wishes and the people who wished for them," Tucker explained.

"Like the one with six arms. I'm guessing that one was from Dash. He said in class that he wished he had more arms to catch more footballs with," Danny explained.

"And there's Tucker's monster truck," Danny pointed out the first entry, "It was pretty obvious where that one came from but we're stuck on the next one."

Sam pulled the note book closer. Under the 'Monster' column Danny had written 'Purple round-headed giant cat-thing'.

Sam tapped her lips thoughtfully, "I think that one was Paulina's. Remember when she wished to be adorable? That's a twisted version of Sayonara Kitty. I have to agree with Desiree on this one; it's definitely an improvement."

Danny wrote Paulina's name and wish in the appropriate columns and they considered the list of monsters again.

"Okay the one-eyed swamp thing is Nathan's," Tucker said.

"Gotta be," agreed Danny, "It's from the evil swamp level in Doom. Nathan kept asking us how to get past it."

"Anyone want to make a guess about the hairy green monster with a big mouth full of teeth?"

Sam laughed. "Can't you figure this one out? Next to Paulina, who spends the most time preoccupied with her hair and smile? Since it can't be Paulina, it's got to be Star."

"That monster was probably Desiree's idea of perfect hair and teeth," agreed Danny.

"Who ordered the giant black cobra?" asked Tucker.

"Actually, I going to guess that was Paulina's Dad." The others looked at him for an explanation. Danny rubbed the back of his neck and sent a weak smile toward Sam. "Well, do you remember that Fall Formal, the dance where Dora's necklace turned you into a giant ghost dragon? When…I…uh picked up Paulina for the dance, her dad made a point of telling me he was ex-military. Cobra ops. And that he knew where I lived." Danny swallowed hard. "All things considered, I'd rather face the ghost snake."

Tucker shrugged, "I'll go with that. Maybe he was thinking of his old army buddies or something. Speaking of old friends, do you think there was any connection to the dragon monster that showed up?"

"Was it fire breathing?" asked Sam.

Tucker shrugged. "It didn't stay around long enough for me to find out. Dragons are a pretty common motif. It's one of the most popular names used in passwords and video game aliases. Which is why I never use it; it could be anybody."

"Let's leave that one blank, for now. What about this red and black monster?"

"There's something about its horns that reminds me of those Samurai helmets," Danny mused, "Kwan?"

Tucker shrugged, "As good a guess as any."

Danny nodded and wrote it down under the 'person' heading. "So what do you think his wish was?"

"To get in touch with his inner warrior?" Sam speculated. "It didn't really stick around long enough for confirmation."

"Sam you wouldn't be responsible for the giant bat creature would you?" Danny asked.

Standing with hand's akimbo, Sam glared at him. "Just because I'm Goth doesn't mean I wished for bats. I'm not stupid enough to have made a wish with Desiree floating right there. Maybe someone wished to get rid of mosquitoes. Bats important play an important role in the balance of the ecosystem by eating insects."

"All things considered, I'd rather use my Foley repellent," Tucker took the pencil from Danny's hand and he wrote 'kill mosquitoes' under the wish column.

"Well maybe the 'Death with a Scythe' is more in line for a Goth," said Danny.

"Just to remind you, this whole mess started with you blaming me for everything," Sam's snapped with irritation.

"It's not like you didn't have anything to do with any of this, you know," Danny retorted. "Why is it that you conveniently seem to forget that?"

Tucker intervened moving into position between his best friends. "Uh Danny?...Sam? Can we please, please not argue about this again?"

Danny and Sam exchanged sheepish looks.

"It's not like Sam is the only Goth around. I could have been Spike. Or maybe just someone with a death wish," Tucker added cheerfully.

"I'm not sure that is the comforting statement we were looking for," noted Sam.

Danny picked up the notebook, looking for a change of topic. "What's next? Evil plants," he read.

This time Danny and Tucker exchanged looks.

"What?" asked Sam. The boys avoided her gaze.

"It's not that I'm blaming you for everything, but this one has got to be yours," Danny declared.

"Evil plants? Why would I wish for evil plants?" Sam scoffed.

"This is exactly the kind of thing you'd wish for. You're always defending Mother Nature. Don't tell me you don't like the idea of plants that can fight back," Tucker insisted.

Sam had to agree. They had her there.

* * *

.


	109. 21MB Geek is the New Sexy

**A 400 word drabble_  
_**

* * *

**Geek is the New Sexy  
**

A "Memory Blank" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

The trio sat back and watched the meteor shower. Behind them they could hear the beat of music coming from Paulina's party.

They sat there letting the dual memories settle in their brains. It was an odd sensation like looking through a telescope (properly) with both eyes open. Your eyes saw completely different views but the one you saw was the one was the one you paid attention to.

"So are you glad you got your powers back?" Tucker asked.

"Yeah, I am but I'm even more grateful to have both my best friends back." Mindful of Tucker's latent jealousy, Danny added, "There were some nice things about not having them too. With the focus off ghost hunting I got to focus on my native talents."

"What talent?" snickered Tucker.

"Hey, there's more to me than just being a ghost," protested Danny.

"Like what?" asked Sam.

Danny paused. What was his claim to fame if you took the ghosts powers away? His dual memory supplied that he was known as the kid whose parents were freaky ghost hunters or the little brother of a genius sister. But that was other people. What had plain old Danny Phantom aspired to? His gaze drifted up to the night sky again, automatically counting the meteors and calculating the rate per minute.

"My 'thing' used to be space." Danny sighed deeply, "At least it was supposed to be."

Sam looked at Danny's slumped figure. "What's with him?"

"Ignore it," Tucker waved dismissively, "It's just his geek showing. A geek gets grumpy when no one recognizes his greatness."

"Takes one to know one," Danny retorted.

Tucker just snickered, "I bet when Paulina invited you to her party you hoped it was because of your expertise in astronomy."

Danny grumbled under his breath, "Geniuses are never appreciated in their own times."

"And that's not the worst of it; when Danny was having trouble with his ghost powers and fell through your chair, Lancer thought though he was fooling around because he was apathetic and ignorant about meteor showers."

Danny's silence was telling.

Tucker winked at Sam. "What did I tell you?"

Sam nodded, "Hell hath no fury like a geek scorned."

"Just shut up, Tucker," the ghost boy growled, eyes flashing green.

"You're just envious that I'm recognized for my awesome skills," Tucker bragged.

"I'm beginning to wish I never met you," Danny sulked.

"Don't say…."

* * *

**Special showing tonight of both Reality Trip AND The Ultimate Enemy at livestream / pieinthesky. 7 and midnight EST. See you there!**


	110. PR Rube Goldberg Plans

My son and I have agreed to disagree about the Matrix. He maintains that it was a way-cool movie, with awesome moves, special effects, and philosophical underpinnings. I just couldn't help rolling my eyes at the premise of the movie and gratuitous violence.

I maintain my right to snicker is upheld by a scientific experiment that was testing a hypothesis on how we understand reality by having ferrets watch "The Matrix". It was suggested that ferrets were used because there were just some things the lab rats refused to do.

Rube Goldberg was known for drawing ridiculously complicated cartoon designs for accomplishing simple tasks.

I do not own Danny Phantom, The Matrix or The Pirates of the Caribbean or the experiment referred to above from Scientific American. Or Rube Goldberg.

* * *

**Rube Goldberg Plans (250)  
**

A "Pirate Radio" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

"Hey Danny, I thought you were grounded for rest of the month,"

Sam greeted Danny at the door and ushered him down into her home theater.

"My parents felt guilty for running off to a cruise and leaving me a sticky note, so they let me off for good behavior after the mess was cleaned up," Danny flopped bonelessly onto into a seat.

"What do you want to watch?" asked Sam as Tucker perused the extensive DVD collection.

"It doesn't matter as long as it's not 'Pirates of the Caribbean'" Danny yawned widely.

"Let's watch 'The Matrix'", suggested Tucker.

Sam waved her arm dismissively, "Naw, that movie's stupid."

"What?" exclaimed Tucker outraged, "How can you say that?"

"The whole premise is utterly ridiculous," Sam asserted.

"The special effects are way cool and Danny can use it like a training video or something," Tucker put forward his case.

Tucker turned to Danny for support but Danny's head was lolled against the back of the couch, mouth open, snoring slightly.

"Enslaving the human race to use their bodies as space heaters? That has got to be the most ludicrous idea ever," Sam scoffed.

"Hey it could happen," Tucker protested, "I mean it's not like we've never seen anything as far-fetched as that before. Such as using vapor drone music and subliminal messages to lure all the adults onto a pirate ship to power it with stolen treadmills."

Tucker popped the disc into the DVD as he said smugly, "I rest my case."

* * *

.


	111. TUE The Repetition of Existence

** Personal headcanon of mine. You need not have read _Watchmen_ to understand it, but it does help put some things into context. There can't be very many beings who can see past, present, and all futures, now can there?**

* * *

**The Repetition of Existence**

A "The Ultimate Enemy" fanfiction

By PuppetMaster55

* * *

.

The cogs are falling. My father is telling me that there is no need for watchmakers in the light of the atomic bomb.

The realm in an empty green expanse, and there are beings, creatures with one giant eye and amorphous green forms. They call themselves Observants, and are going to convince me to work with them. I am convinced, and we build our own world. I reject them, and wander in the expanse between time and space without direction or purpose.

I am on Mars. Laurie is trying to convince me to return to earth; to express interest in humanity, a species I am rapidly losing interest in.

Daniel Fenton is putting on a white HAZMAT suit, tearing off the picture of his father from his chest. He is about to step into the Ghost Portal.

The Phantom – no longer Daniel, no longer human – is before me, begging and pleading to undo the unspeakable act he has committed. I say yes, and the world suffers. I say no, and the world is no more.

I am in Antarctica, unable to know my future, speaking in both past, present, and future, informing Laurie and Rorschach of the tachyons preventing me from seeing my life from all sides.

Daniel is standing before me, a young being with such promise, handing me a Fenton thermos holding his elder self. The thermos will hold. The thermos will fail.

Daniel Fenton is stepping into the machine that will decide his fate. He lives, and does not have any ghost powers. He dies, and is no longer human.

I enter the intrinsic field subtractor, grabbing my forgotten lab coat – where Janey's repaired watch marks the passing seconds with rhythmic ticks – as the door shuts behind me. The intrinsic field subtractor activates. I die, and return as a god-creature. I die, and remain so.

I exist. I do not exist.

I am young, a child. I am a young man, in the prime of his life. An old man at the end of his life.

The cycle repeats, neither ending nor stopping. An eternal loop without escape.

I am one; I am many. I am all, I am none. I am here, but never there. I am there, but never here.

I am contradiction and paradox. I am continuity and causality. I am past, present, and all futures.

The Observants convince me to work with them, and together we build my place of residence – a clocktower, surrounded by large gears and filled with the endless ticking of time. It is so reminiscent of the glass palace laying in ruins on Mars, yet is nothing like it.

Laurie convinces me to return with the reveal of her paternity. We return to New York, in the midst of a bloodbath that claims the lives of millions.

Young Daniel is before me, desperate to change history. I oblige him, placing the halfling in the thread of time he is needed. I decline him, and he rebels.

An older Daniel stands before me, needing platitudes, seeking approval of his relationship. In one time, it is the human girl Sam; another, the hunter Valerie; yet another, Plasmius; for another, his human half (and for his human half, the Phantom). These are not limited to one timeline, existing in tandem – always branching outwards, creating ever more futures, ever more possibilities.

I am Jon Osterman, and my life has been cut short. I am Doctor Manhattan, and my life is being supplanted by the god-creature I have become, am becoming, will become.

Young Daniel has the test in his hand, making a decision that will affect the rest of the Earth. He returns it to the teacher, Lancer, and becomes the savior of Earth. He keeps it, and becomes the new king of the Ghost World.

The Ghost World breaks apart, becoming an endless expanse full of hidden dimensions and doorways to anywhere in space and time, and is now called the Ghost Zone. The Ghost World does not break apart, and grows into a formidable empire that wants no part with the Human World. The empire attempts peaceful contact with the Human World. It works, and they become allies against the dread ectoranium meteor. It falls apart, and the two worlds fall into war and destroy one another.

I step into the tachyon generator, and am cut away from the god-creature, finding myself in the empty green expanse at the beginning of time. I am approached by green amorphous beings with one big eye and nothing else on the heads that call themselves Observants. I am not met by any creature.

It is the beginning of everything, and I am the oldest being in existence.

It is the end of all creation, and I am the youngest being.

I am both ghost and god, the paradox and the continuity. The beginning and the end. The first and the last. The cycle that never ends, the circle that consumes itself.

I am Clockwork.

.

* * *

**Possible livestream tonight. I won't be around to confirm, but if it happens, it will be same time same place as usual. :)**

The cogs are falling. My father is telling me that there is no need for watchmakers in the light of the atomic bomb.

The realm in an empty green expanse, and there are beings, creatures with one giant eye and amorphous green forms. They call themselves Observants, and are going to convince me to work with them. I am convinced, and we build our own world. I reject them, and wander in the expanse between time and space without direction or purpose.

I am on Mars. Laurie is trying to convince me to return to earth; to express interest in humanity, a species I am rapidly losing interest in.

Daniel Fenton is putting on a white HAZMAT suit, tearing off the picture of his father from his chest. He is about to step into the Ghost Portal.

The Phantom – no longer Daniel, no longer human – is before me, begging and pleading to undo the unspeakable act he has committed. I say yes, and the world suffers. I say no, and the world is no more.

I am in Antarctica, unable to know my future, speaking in both past, present, and future, informing Laurie and Rorschach of the tachyons preventing me from seeing my life from all sides.

Daniel is standing before me, a young being with such promise, handing me a Fenton thermos holding his elder self. The thermos will hold. The thermos will fail.

Daniel Fenton is stepping into the machine that will decide his fate. He lives, and does not have any ghost powers. He dies, and is no longer human.

I enter the intrinsic field subtractor, grabbing my forgotten lab coat – where Janey's repaired watch marks the passing seconds with rhythmic ticks – as the door shuts behind me. The intrinsic field subtractor activates. I die, and return as a god-creature. I die, and remain so.

I exist. I do not exist.

I am young, a child. I am a young man, in the prime of his life. An old man at the end of his life.

The cycle repeats, neither ending nor stopping. An eternal loop without escape.

I am one; I am many. I am all, I am none. I am here, but never there. I am there, but never here.

I am contradiction and paradox. I am continuity and causality. I am past, present, and all futures.

The Observants convince me to work with them, and together we build my place of residence – a clocktower, surrounded by large gears and filled with the endless ticking of time. It is so reminiscent of the glass palace laying in ruins on Mars, yet is nothing like it.

Laurie convinces me to return with the reveal of her paternity. We return to New York, in the midst of a bloodbath that claims the lives of millions.

Young Daniel is before me, desperate to change history. I oblige him, placing the halfling in the thread of time he is needed. I decline him, and he rebels.

An older Daniel stands before me, needing platitudes, seeking approval of his relationship. In one time, it is the human girl Sam; another, the hunter Valerie; yet another, Plasmius; for another, his human half (and for his human half, the Phantom). These are not limited to one timeline, existing in tandem – always branching outwards, creating ever more futures, ever more possibilities.

I am Jon Osterman, and my life has been cut short. I am Doctor Manhattan, and my life is being supplanted by the god-creature I have become, am becoming, will become.

Young Daniel has the test in his hand, making a decision that will affect the rest of the Earth. He returns it to the teacher, Lancer, and becomes the savior of Earth. He keeps it, and becomes the new king of the Ghost World.

The Ghost World breaks apart, becoming an endless expanse full of hidden dimensions and doorways to anywhere in space and time, and is now called the Ghost Zone. The Ghost World does not break apart, and grows into a formidable empire that wants no part with the Human World. The empire attempts peaceful contact with the Human World. It works, and they become allies against the dread ectoranium meteor. It falls apart, and the two worlds fall into war and destroy one another.

I step into the tachyon generator, and am cut away from the god-creature, finding myself in the empty green expanse at the beginning of time. I am approached by green amorphous beings with one big eye and nothing else on the heads that call themselves Observants. I am not met by any creature.

It is the beginning of everything, and I am the oldest being in existence.

It is the end of all creation, and I am the youngest being.

I am both ghost and god, the paradox and the continuity. The beginning and the end. The first and the last. The cycle that never ends, the circle that consumes itself.

I am Clockwork.


	112. 34MOAT Desperate Acts

**Rated PG13**

**In the 'Masters of All Time' we watch Danny go to Clockwork, muck around in the past, change the timeline, then return everything to normal. We're expected to believe that Clockwork being Clockwork, he makes sure this all passes in a blink of the real world's eye. **

**I don't buy it for a second.**

**Note: This story differs slightly in a few details. Inconsequential ones, really. The result of adding science, stretching timelines, and tweaking the ending.**

* * *

**Desperate Acts**

A "Masters of All Time" Fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

Vlad Masters sat on the Fenton's couch, his head cradled in his hands as he fought off the blooming headache behind his eyes. For once it had nothing to do with the big orange-clad oaf who paced the room in uncharacteristic worry. He tried to ignore the pain, ignore the raw blisters that marred his face, ignore everything but the ranting going on around him. Already it was getting hard to focus on things.

Only he knew how bad it would get.

Although if they didn't find a cure this time he wouldn't be the only one. He might just be the only one who survived.

"You of all people should have known how dangerous this is," Jack said as he paced. "You've had this before!"

"It's never been contagious before," Vlad snarled. "Not that you'll believe me. You didn't believe this was serious the first time, why would you now?"

"That's a low blow, Masters," Jack growled, stopping in his tracks.

Vlad hauled himself to his feet, ignoring the woozy feeling that had the world growing dark around the edges. "Isn't it?" he purred, stalking up to Jack. "You never took the time to realize what was happening then, no, you were too wrapped up in your own life while I spent years in the hospital with this. This!"

"It was an accident!"

"And their exposure was accidental, too." Vlad gestured toward the second floor where Daniel's little friends were hiding out in his room. "This has never been contagious before. There was no reason to expect it to be this time. If I'd known do you think I'd have risked exposing anyone? Think, Jack. Would I do such a thing?"

_Of course we knew. Of course we did._

Vlad tamped down the thought, the first nonphysical sign of what was to come.

"No, you wouldn't," Jack admitted. "You're not pointlessly mean like that, Vladdie. I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking. Of course you wouldn't go out of your way to hurt people. You're not evil like that."

"But why come to us?" Maddie asked from the landing above. She came down the staircase to join the two men in the living room. "I have Danny's friends set up in his bedroom for now. They've both got it bad. They're breaking out with ecto-acne, they're both unnaturally tired, and I had to give Tucker 600mg of ibuprofen for his headache. I don't know if that'll help or what to expect. Danny won't leave their sides and I have no idea if he's safe there or not. I say we need to get all three of you to a hospital."

All color drained out of Vlad's face. "Don't you **dare**..."

"Vlad, we don't have any idea how to deal with this," Maddie said.

"And you think a hospital will?" he demanded.

"At least they're equipped!"

"Oh, yes, because being equipped makes up for the fact that they have no buttercreamed clue!"

"And what do you expect us to do?"

"You're scientists, you're paran-normal researchers..." Vlad took a breath as the darkness around his vision shot inward and pulled at him. "You can... can..." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again the world was red around the edges. Jack and Maddie pulled away from him before coming closer in something akin to fascination. "You at least recognize that ecto-acne isn't always... fatal... If you t-take the children to a hospital they'll treat it as radiation poisoning a-and they'll die. I a-almost died when the f-first hospital made the same mistake t-twenty... yearsss..." He trailed off as the red in his vision faded, taking everything with it. He felt the world fall...

Jack caught Vlad as he passed out and carried him back to the couch, laying him down and wrapping him in a blanket.

"We really should call someone who knows about this," Maddie said. "We can't deal with this."

"Why not, Mads?" Jack asked. "We're the only ghost hunters in town. We do research all the time."

"Yes, but we don't have the facilities-"

"We can convert the lab! C'mon, it'll work. And you're a doctor. We can cure this ourselves!"

"Jack, you know I'm not that kind of doctor."

"Now all we need to do is get the lab clean then we can section about half of it off as a clean room for working and for the patients, we can do all the research we need ourselves, this'll work great!"

Maddie sighed and accepted it. They were going to try and cure ecto-acne, it seemed. She glared at the man passed out on their sofa. She swore the moment he tried to turn her into his personal candy striper she was going to make him **hurt**.

Getting the lab converted began with Danny cleaning the lab, a task that curiously took much less time when he was alone than when he was being watched. Plastic sheeting was brought in to separate the three afflicted into clean areas as well as other supplies: scrubs, needles, IVs, medications, even some surgical equipment. At Vlad's direction an amount of plexiglass was ordered, enough to seal them away from the world in case they needed it. After some negotiation and not a small amount of threats to call an ambulance it was decided that VladCo would be picking up the tab. In return VladCo and FentonWorks would joint publish any findings that resulted from their efforts.

Vlad was forced to borrow a pair of pajamas as he adamantly refused to be put into surgical scrubs. Jack's clothes had no chance of fitting so Maddie sucked up her distaste and offered Vlad a pair of her own. She refused to acknowledge how he leered at her after that or how he spent the first day surreptitiously smelling the fabric.

They had more important things to worry about. Research, for one. They had no idea where to begin.

Jack slammed his fist onto the desk, making the keyboard rattle. He groaned and let his head fall in his hands.

"You should take a break," Maddie said, offering a comforting rub to his shoulder and a mug of fresh coffee.

"Ugh, I can't find **anything** on ecto-acne!" Jack growled, gesturing wildly at the offending computer and its useless internet.

Maddie took a look at the screen. She saw tabs opened on Hoover Dam, on the Yurlov Crower chicken, on unsolved problems of thermodynamics, and on ghost sightings in the Ukraine. "That's because you're on Wikipedia, dear," she said. "Here, you go have a cookie and I'll see what I can find, okay?"

Jack got up and sullenly headed to the kitchen. Maddie sat down at the computer, closed Jack's tabs, and got to work mining the archives of the internet for something that might help cure Vlad and Danny's little friends of their horribly disfiguring condition. A couple of clicks and some lucky searches found her something interesting. Something that might prove useful. She settled down to read it.

Jack found her there a few hours later reading a several hundred page file. "How you doing, Mads?" he asked, offering her a cookie.

Maddie rubbed her eyes and sat back to stretch. She looked at the clock, amazed by the hours that had gone by. "I may have found something," she said. She tabbed over to her first finding, a two line note on OccultNet saying ecto-acne was a form of radiodermatitis caused by exposure to ectoplasm. From there it was a cascade of followed links to what she was reading now, some heavily blacked-out internal memo leaked out of the Guys in White. She scrolled back up and pointed out the title.

"'Severe Ectoplasmic Contamination: Assessment and Management.' Well it certainly sounds official," Jack said.

"That's because it is," Maddie said, leaning back in her chair, hands clasped behind her head. "Somebody either hacked it or used the Freedom of Information Act to get it from the Guys in White. I'm thinking the latter given all the black ink over the best bits. It's... rather interesting, actually."

"So it's all about getting rid of contamination, right?" Jack asked, hopeful.

Maddie shrugged. "I haven't gotten that far," she admitted. "Mostly it's about this one case study they got ahold of. Poor guy. He came in with ecto-acne and headaches and got worse real fast. The hospital he was staying at treated it as radiation poisoning until he went into a coma or something. Had to be a coma because they say he woke up."

"Ecto-acne and headaches?" Jack asked. "That's how Vlad's ecto-acne started." This might be useful. If they could find out how the GIW cured that one case study...

"Lemme find the description," she mused, skimming the document until she found it. "Ah, here we are. 'The subject designated Patient 613 was a 24 year old male of Russian descent. Patient 613 was exposed through an attempt to open an unauthorized artificial portal to the ghost dimension. Exposure was restricted to the... head and neck...'" She trailed off as she just then realized what she was saying. She looked at Jack and watched the color drain from his face. They both looked past the plastic sheeting to the semi-conscious form of their old college friend as he lay on the makeshift bed.

"Go on," Jack said.

Maddie swallowed, her mouth suddenly going very dry. She continued in a quiet voice. "'Immediate symptoms were acute facial dermatitis, glowing eyes, and the stripping of artificial dyes from the hair. Debilitating headaches and fatigue began within thirty-six hours of exposure. At this point radiation exposure was suspected and the subject treated accordingly with potassium iodide and palliative care. Mild leukopenia developed 16 days after exposure, growing to moderate intensity at 27 days and severe at 31 days. Fever and impairment of cognitive function began at 25 days after exposure. Broad spectrum empirical therapy was initiated at this time. Patient 613 was declared dead 35 days after exposure, cause unknown.

"'Patient 613 awoke 27 hours later during autopsy.'"

"**During** autopsy?" Jack whispered.

"'It was at this point the subject was transferred to a secure facility for more thorough treatment and... study,'" Maddie continued, voice wavering. "'The subject's leukopenia decreased in severity without intervention and the subject's immune system made a full recovery. Dermatitis and fatigue persisted for several months and it is suspected that the subject will experience recall reactions in the future.

"'This document details the subject's initial recovery and subsequent testing' oh god, Jack." She wasn't able to read any more. Suddenly this wasn't just a scientific paper. It wasn't a random document about a nameless, faceless test subject who'd volunteered. This was...

Jack pushed past the plastic sheeting, not even bothering with his containment suit. He stood over Vlad's restlessly shifting form, not wanting to look. If it was really there...

He felt ill as he pulled the sheets down and unbuttoned the borrowed pajamas. He froze at the sight.

"During autopsy," Jack whispered. There was no denying it. There, right there. White against pale skin, so pale that he'd missed it before. Scars. The distinctive y-cut scars of an autopsy.

Maddie felt ill as she sat at the kitchen table. Jack sat across from her, loudly buzzing in his seat. A plate sat between them, a plate that once held a triple batch of cookies. Now only a few were left, sitting alone and forlorn among the crumbs.

"How could we have missed this?" she asked. "How?"

"It wasn't our fault, Mads," Jack said.

"But he was in so much pain! Jack, he was studied! From what I could figure out he wasn't even treated like a human being!"

"We didn't know," Jack snapped. "We were busy, we had our own problems. We had no way of knowing! Even if we had known what could we have done? The Guys in White don't exactly leave obvious trails to follow. Honestly, I think they're the ones who told Mom and Dad that Vlad was dead. How could we have found him against that even if we knew? We couldn't have known, even if we tried."

Maddie stared at the plate and its crumbs. She watched as Jack grabbed another cookie. "We didn't even try," she whispered.

Jack munched silently.

"We have to try now," she said. "We owe him that."

Jack came down to the lab. It was the middle of the night and their patients were sleeping. Tucker held his PDA like a teddy bear and sucked his thumb. Sam was sprawled over the bed, sheets halfway kicked off, snoring loudly. Vlad had his head hidden under a pillow, likely to block out the noise and the light.

It was the middle of the night and Maddie still hadn't come to bed. He was exhausted, surely she must be as well. But that didn't explain why she was still up, still down here in the lab, her goggles down as she attempted to read a ream's worth of pages that sat scattered around her. Jack picked up one of the pages.

"When did we get black-faxed?" he asked. The page was so covered in black ink from redactions that it might as well have simply been a sheet of black paper.

"We're out of toner again," Maddie said.

"Again?! Maddie, I just bought three cartridges!"

Maddie gestured to the pages and pages around her. "I printed out the whole document," she said. "I was trying to see if I could use spectral analysis to read under the redacted lines." She scowled at it all. "Nothing. I can't make heads or tails of it. There's just too much that's been blacked-out."

"Anything useful at all?" Jack asked.

Maddie shifted past some useless black pages to a stack that she'd marked with post-it notes. "From what I could gather the Guys in White never spent time looking for a cure," she said. "They never stumbled on one, either. In fact, if I'm reading this right, they worked to try and keep Vlad sick for as long as possible."

"What?"

She held up a stack marked with bright pink post-its. "They were very interested in the effects of the ecto-acne on Vlad's psyche," she said. "When they first got ahold of him they thought he was possessed. But it didn't act like possession. It wasn't multiple personalities, either. They either never figured out what was going on or the answer's hidden under all these redactions." She sighed and scowled at the black-inked carnage around her. "I don't know which would be worse, that the answer isn't here or that is it but we just can't find it."

"So there's nothing useful here," Jack realized.

"Not in terms of a cure, no."

Jack nodded. He pulled on Maddie's arm, dragging her away from her pages. "We'll figure it out, Mads," he said. "It's early yet, they aren't that sick. Right now the best thing we can do for them is to get some sleep. Then in the morning we can find a cure ourselves."

Maddie nodded and let herself be dragged off up the stairs. At the top of the stairwell she looked back down at the lab and its occupants.

They needed to find a cure. Badly.

Stomping on the lab steps drew curious eyes to the pair storming their way down into the laboratory. An angry cloud of pink silk and plaid sweater vest drew a groan out of Sam as she hid her face in the pillow. She did not want her parents here.

"There she is!" Pamela shouted. "What have you done to my daughter you-youyou..." She glared at Maddie Fenton, trying and failing to find something civilized that still accurately detailed how she felt.

"Mr. and Mrs. Manson, I'm so glad to see you," Maddie said through gritted teeth.

"Glad, nothing, Mrs. Fenton," Jeremy said. "I demand you release our daughter from this-this **experiment** you have going on here!"

"I'm afraid that's a very bad idea."

"Release her this instant or-or we'll have you arrested for kidnapping!" Pamela stomped her foot against the floor as she gave her ultimatum.

"Now see here!" Sam shouted, throwing herself into a sitting position. She fought off the woozy feeling that tried to drag her right back down. "Mom, Dad, this isn't something you can control! This isn't an experiment! We need to be cured of this and the Fentons know what they're doing!"

Unfortunately neither Jeremy nor Pamela heard their daughter's words. They didn't hear anything. Instead they saw the weeping sores marring their daughter's face. They saw how difficult it was for her to sit up. They saw her slow gasping for breath between each sentence as though the effort of speaking exhausted her.

"We have to get you to a hospital," Pamela whispered.

"That would be a bad idea." Jack Fenton glared at Vlad for speaking; he'd hoped to stay hidden at Vlad's bedside so he wouldn't have to talk to Sam's parents.

The Mansons glared at this... person who dared interrupt them. Obviously some degenerate friend of the Fentons what with that long wild gray hair sticking every which way and those shadowed red-ringed eyes, his pale skin pocked and marred with pulsing red sores. He looked as exhausted as their daughter. "What, and leaving her here is a better one?" Jeremy demanded.

"Why not?" Vlad asked. "If you take her to a hospital she'll die."

"You don't know that," Pamela snapped.

"On the contrary, you're looking at one of the few who can know," Vlad purred. "A hospital is just going to treat this like radiation sickness. You know how they treat radiation poisoning, don't you? They stick you in a room and **hope**. No treatment, no cures, just... keep you comfortable so you don't die screaming in pain. But you die."

"And how would you know?" Jeremy asked.

Vlad smiled at them. "The last time a hospital dealt with a case like this their patient ended up in autopsy," Vlad said, a careless purr tainting his voice as he gestured with a broad dramatic flair. "This patient was still alive when they sliced into him. Of course it wasn't the hospital's fault. No hospital ranked one of the best in the country would **dare** make a mistake like that. But go ahead. Amity General is nowhere near as equipped now as Wisconsin University was twenty years ago. Maybe when your daughter is dissected alive without anesthesia, trapped in her own mind unable to scream, maybe this time the hospital will be found at fault."

Pamela and Jeremy both looked and felt ill.

"Then again she might survive," Vlad continued. "She'll only have to carry the physical scars for the rest of her life. Or you could leave her in the care of possibly the only woman in the country who knows what this is and has any chance at all of curing it."

Jack glared at Vlad again. "What about me?" he asked.

Vlad laid back down and curled up in the sheets. Throwing power into his voice like that made him tired. "You never finished your PhD," he said, his eyes drifting closed. He didn't actually care what happened with the children so long as at least one of them stayed here. He needed them to keep Daniel in line.

Daniel would not fail so long as his friend's lives were on the line.

Jack hid in the living room while Maddie paced the kitchen, phone pressed to her ear. Danny came downstairs to see the orange quarantine tape pasted over the windows. He put his backpack down. "Huh," he said.

"Oh, hey, Danny," Jack said.

"Um... what's with the tape?" Danny asked, pointing at the windows.

"After your little friend's parents came by we figured it was a good idea," Jack said. "Jazzy-pants is over at a friend's house so she can keep going to school while the house is under quarantine. I guess since you're still here that means you're staying here with us."

"But... why?" Danny asked, still pointing.

Jack sighed. "Your mother thinks it's contagious," he said. "I don't blame her. How else were your friends affected, after all?"

"Yes, how else," Danny said, glaring in the direction of the lab. He knew Plasmius had planned this.

"So I guess that means your mother needs to call the school and tell them you're gonna be staying here for the duration. I'm sure your teachers won't mind. Ecto-acne is nothing to sneeze at, no siree. We Fentons aren't making that mistake again."

Danny grabbed his book bag and trudged back upstairs. No school today then. Nothing at all to distract him from the plight of his friends downstairs or the thoroughly evil deeds of the man beside them. And his parents had no idea how to cure the ecto-acne.

If only there were some way to fix this...

If only the accident hadn't happened in the first place...

Hey... Wait a minute...

Danny dropped his backpack on the bed, transformed, and zoomed down to the lab. He sped through the ghost zone, looking for the one being in all the realms who could cure his friends by making sure the accident never happened in the first place.

They were sitting up today, that was an improvement. Tucker and Sam were able to sit up and take some soup while Vlad refused the bowl.

"C'mon, Vladdy, you need to eat something," Jack pleaded from within his big white containment suit. "You gotta keep up your strength!"

Vlad looked at the bowl of 'random flavor from a can' and turned his nose at it.

Jack sat on the edge of Vlad's bed. "Please, Vlad? For me?" Jack picked up the spoon and started making flying motions with it. "I'll feed you if you wanna. The Specter Speeder's zooming toward the storage bay?"

Vlad growled as he heard the snickers around him.

Jack tried again, flying a spoonful of soup near Vlad's bared teeth, not noticing that most of the spoon's contents slopped out long before the spoon reached anywhere near a useful position.

Vlad's arm shot out, knocking the spoon away. "Get that blasted swill away from us!" he snapped.

Jack jumped, dumping half the bowl over his containment suit. "'Us'?" he asked. "What us? Vlad, there's only you and me here."

Vlad's eyes faded red for the faintest of instances before he growled, stalking toward Jack on all fours.

"Umm... Vladdy?"

Vlad pounced, landing on Jack's chest. His hands wrapped around the neck of Jack's suit, gripping tight. An alarm beeped in Jack's ear, warning him that the pressure seal was breaking. Red-blue eyes glared into his as Vlad's hot breath fogged the glass faceplate.

"Laissez-nous tranquilles," Vlad said, the syllables falling off his tongue like he was a native speaker. "Pourquoi faites-vous cela? Qu'avons-nous fait de vous pour meriter cela?"

"What?" Jack asked.

Vlad shoved Jack away, taking little satisfaction as Jack fell to the floor and had to scramble away on hands and knees. "Nous voulons juste rentre a la maison," he said, sounding mournful. "S'il tu plait laissez-nous partir."

Jack made it out of the containment area back into the lab. A long glare from Maddie sent him directly to the safety shower.

Vlad huffed at them all before curling up in bed, pulling the blankets around him like a nest as he snuggled in on himself like an animal.

"I didn't know Vlad spoke French," Maddie said.

"He doesn't," Jack said from the corner.

She looked thoughtful for a moment before flipping through her stack of post-it marked pages. "Ah hah!" she crowed. "I knew there was something about that in here! Jack, this paper says Vlad was able to speak fluent French despite no exposure or training. It was apparently intermittent though. They say it was the influence of..." She trailed off before swearing loudly and slapping the pages down on the floor. "It's redacted! It's bloody redacted!"

Jack stripped off his containment suit and left it in the water. He came up behind Maddie and wrapped his arms around her. "Shh, we'll work around it," he promised. "We'll figure it out on our own." He sighed, disappointment rising. "I just wish either of us knew French."

"I do," Sam said.

"Sam?" Maddie asked.

"I mean, I'm taking it in school," she admitted. "That's gotta count for something, right?"

"Do you know what he said, honey?" Maddie asked.

Sam shrugged. "Sort of. He, well... He kept referring to himself as 'us'. 'Let us go. What did we ever do to you? Why are you doing this?'" She trailed off before looking up at Maddie, her eyes sad and very scared. "'We just want to go home.'"

"Oh." There was nothing else Maddie could say to that. Not just because of the language or the look on Sam's face. But the words...

Vlad came to them for help. He knew where he was. He knew what they were doing to him, that they were trying to cure him. If he'd already forgotten...

Maddie looked at the curled form hiding under the sheets. If he'd forgotten already then they had much less time than they thought.

Jack flipped through pages of data, the kitchen light the only source of illumination in the dark of night behind the biohazard tape. They were running low on chocolate chips. Jack mindlessly ate one of the few remaining chocolate chip cookies and wondered idly when they'd be able to get more. That would require breaching the containment perimeter and Maddie would kill him if he put the whole town at risk for a few pounds of chocolate.

So while Maddie worked downstairs Jack stayed here in the kitchen going over her notes. Ugh, he hated this part of science. He was never any good with turning random numbers into science, that was all Vlad and Maddie. But Maddie was busy and Vlad was...

Well...

Jack sighed again and picked up a new page, blinking hard until the random lines coalesced into words and numbers. He needed sleep. He needed something but they were running low on coffee and Maddie hadn't let him into the medicine cabinet for the little pills yet.

His mind wandered. Jack had calculated that a ghost portal mishap could never give a person massive contamination resulting in a large scale mutation of the body. He was willing to stand by those calculations. But...

Jack pulled out a sheet of paper covered in black-lined redactions. A good half of the symptoms and most of the conclusion was missing but from what was here...

...perhaps a portal mishap could causes smaller-scale alterations. Ecto-acne for instance. That was a given as they had three cases of it downstairs. So why not more? Why not symptoms that might mimic a more normal possession?

Jack bolted up and ran downstairs. "Maddie, I got it!" he shouted.

Sam turned over and kept snoring. Tucker pulled his thumb from his mouth as the shouting drew him to consciousness. Vlad had been sedated and didn't even notice. Maddie stood bolt upright, her face a perfect picture of delighted surprise. "You got it?" she asked. "You really found the cure?!"

Jack paused at the base of the stairs. Cure? What cure? Wait, no... "No, not the cure," he admitted. "I figured out why Vlad's gone crazy!"

Maddie visibly deflated. She put on a brave face and wrapped her arms around her husband. It wasn't a cure but he claimed to have something... Maybe it was something good. "You know why Vlad's crazy?" she asked.

Jack nodded happily. "It's a lesser ectoplasmic contamination," he said proudly. "Like a possession but not really since there's no ghost present. So it'll mimic a possession but exorcism or treatment or nothin' won't do anything about it! It's why the Guys in White couldn't fix Vlad!"

Maddie perked up. That was an interesting idea. And if her reading of the paper was correct then the Guys in White had never thought of it. Being able to one-up the Guys in White left her with a warm and fuzzy feeling inside.

"So his crazy is just a symptom of the ecto-acne," Jack continued. "We don't have to worry about it since there's no ghost in there fueling it! And that means once we cure him he'll-"

"No..."

Jack and Maddie turned to look at this new voice. Tucker was trying to push himself up in bed. "I don't want to go crazy," he said, pleading quietly. "Don't let it happen to me, Mrs. Fenton. I don't wanna go crazy..." He fell back into the bed, too weak to try again.

"Don't worry, Sweetie," Maddie assured from the other side of the glass. "I promise, we won't let anything bad happen to you."

"Yeah!" Jack crowed. "And if you do go crazy, well, I'm sure whatever cure we find can bring you right back!"

Maddie glared at Jack as Tucker curled up, shaking with fear.

Sam was the first one to spike a fever. She put on a brave face as the Fentons used their business connections to get antibiotics shipped in. She knew they were afraid for her. She was afraid, too, but not for her life. She knew Danny would come through, even if no one had seen nor heard from him in almost two weeks.

No, it wasn't death she feared. It was becoming like Vlad.

The padded floor was uncomfortable, insulting, unsanitary, and all too familiar. At least the straightjacket was missing although they did not remember ever being without it. Instead there were sheets that they could pull out of the floor and fluff around themselves as they curled up in a nest. They knew they should feel lucky that they had even this, patients aren't allowed beds or nests, no, a patient is supposed to sleep on the floor in his straightjacket if he keeps insisting there's more than one inside poor Vladimir's head and if he can't then he'll be sedated until he falls asleep or stops moving. They shuddered and curled up in the nest, pulling it tight around themselves. Maybe if they curled up enough they'd implode and the orderlies would never find them, could never touch them again with filthy hands, leering faces, hard fists, shining needles...

The door to the padded cell opened. Except there was something wrong. The walls didn't look like they were made of padding, cracking foam, stinking stained canvas, stains of blood and fear and rents from when the orderlies forgot to keep them restrained and they went to work with claws and burning red eyes and screaming screaming screaming...

One of the orderlies came in. When did orderlies wear space suits? What was going on? Where were they? This wasn't the facility but it had to be, they were sick and they were never outside when they were sick and they never were released from the facility so how could they be anywhere else?

"Vlad, I need to take your temperature," the man said. Familiar. His voice was so familiar. It inspired such anger, it must be one of **those** orderlies, it was always the big ones, the big ones always like to hurt and take and torment. They pulled away from the orderly's white-gloved touch.

"Vlad, please, I just need to make sure you're not running a fever." The orderly came close with something shining in one hand. Of course he was going to say he just wanted Vlad's temperature or something innocent then he would inject them with something again. Always with the injections, always painful or sleepy or burning hot or quiet without the other voice or all of it, everything at once.

"Get away from us!" they shrieked, leaping from the nest and pressing into the corner. They looked around, looking for something, anything to defend themselves with. They weren't in the straightjacket, their hands were free, ooohhhh that orderly was going to regret ever touching them...

"Vlad, I don't want to hurt you!" The orderly lunged for them, trying to trap them in the corner with his huge bulk, big and white and pain, so much promised pain.

Something broke in Vlad's head, two minds becoming two distinct voices. Eyes flared red as one drew their legs up to shove that huge white-dressed man away from them. The other collected the scattered shards of their will and dragged their body into a standing position. Their legs were shaky, so shaky, so tired, in so much danger. "Je ne vous laissera pas lui faire de mal," one said while the other growled. Then one lost control and their eyes turned blue again, the other was barely able to catch their body as exhaustion and illness rampaged.

Vlad's eyes rolled back as the world spun and went black.

Jack Fenton stood in the glass-walled clean room, his white containment suit filled with the echoed sounds of his own ragged breathing. "What was that?" he asked. "What did he say?"

Maddie flipped through Tucker's PDA for a translation program then let it work on the recorded words. "He said 'I won't let you hurt him anymore.'"

"But hurt who?" Jack wondered aloud.

"I don't know."

Jack pushed away the guilt, the confusion, and did what he needed to do. He rearranged Vlad's bed, laid him back in it, and checked for fever. No fever, not yet. He looked down at the pale, weak, **pitiful** form of his sick friend and made a decision. Jack gently lifted Vlad up and placed him to one edge of the bed then laid down next to him. Jack would be damned if his best friend had to suffer through this alone.

One woke up first, unsure why their eyes are closed. One called out into the fiery blackness of their mind, trying to drag the other out of sleep, out of silence, so much silence. One slowly started trying to do something with their body, twitching their fingers and shaking their head. It was so hard, so tiring, so hot...

One fell back into the soft blackness of sleep as the other woke up. Their eyes opened to the feel of a heavy arm over their chest, the sounds of a voice at their ear. The other didn't recognize the words, not quite, not given how run together they were. Didn't the voice know that English wasn't a first language? "Quel est-il?" the other mumbled. _What is it?_

One was dragged back to consciousness by the other, the other wincing as they were hit by the sensation of burning from the inside out. "Jack?"

"Vladdie!" Jack shouted.

Vlad looked around through red-hazed vision, pointedly ignoring the way the world seemed to be boiling. "Pourquoi tu es..." One shook their head as the other reached up to grab it to keep it from moving. They tried asking again. "Why are you in bed with us?" Vlad asked.

Jack wrapped his arms around his friend, his heart wrenching. Even in this moment of lucidity Vlad still seemed to be crazy, still thought there were two of them in there. He felt Vlad sigh and sort of resign himself to being held, something that Jack was imminently grateful for as a whole new realization was made.

Vlad was burning up.

"You're running a bad fever, Vlad," Jack said.

"Et alors?" Vlad sighed in frustration before trying again. "I chto?" One's eyes glowed red as the other growled. That wasn't English either, that was Russian. They tried again. "**AND?!**" they nearly shouted, forcing the English out.

Jack watched this all as he held Vlad close. It broke his heart that his friend's brain was so addled that he was having trouble distinguishing between languages. If only they could find a cure. Not just before this horrid ecto-acne killed Vlad or Danny's little friends but before it damaged their minds. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so so sorry, Vlad. I wish we could cure this. I wish you didn't have to be like this. I wish I could make it all better but I can't, I don't know how. I don't know how..."

Jack's words flowed past one then the other. Within the recesses of Vlad's mind two sets of eyes, one blue and one red, regarded the man's words with contempt. Two voices, one deep and purring, the other small and nasal, taunted the man who held them.

"Vous l'avez fait pour nous."

_You did this to us._

"Vous méritez de souffrir."

_You deserve to suffer._

"Regardez ce que vous avez fait pour nous, Jack."

_Look at what you've done to us, Jack._

"Je vous hais pour toute ma vie."

_I will hate you for the rest of my life._

Yet all that Jack heard was one voice whispering one line over and over. "Vous l'avez fait pour nous."

You did this to us.

The alarms started shrieking 20 days into the quarantine. Jack scrambled into the containment room, frantic and near panic. He knew what that sound meant.

One of their patients was going into distress. Jack made a beeline for Vlad as Sam and Tucker weakly tried to lift themselves off their pillows to watch. Jack tore the sheet off of Vlad and ripped open his surgical scrubs with his hands alone. Maddie came in with the portable defibrillator and started preparing the paddles.

"Do it," Jack pleaded as the alarm turned into a single ominous tone.

Maddie pressed the charged paddles to Vlad's chest and squeezed. Vlad arched into the current then laid back, quiet. The heart monitor beeped and fluttered for a few moments before going dull and shrieking again. "Again, Maddie!"

Maddie grumbled and turned up the power on the machine. She charged the paddles and pressed them again. Vlad's eyes glowed red as the current coursed through him and wisps of pale rose-colored energy arched between his fingertips. But his heart didn't start again.

"Please, Vlad, wake up!" Jack pleaded. "Live!"

Maddie glanced at her son's little friends and wondered which of them would be next. That was enough to cause her to turn the machine up to its highest setting, high enough to burn flesh, and shove Jack out of the way. She pressed the paddles to Vlad's chest and squeezed the trigger.

The machine squealed in agony as its capacitor was drained and then more as the body it was pressed to seemed to feed off of it, actively pulling enough electricity to blow the circuits. Smoke trailed from the machine as Maddie threw the paddles at the floor.

"No!" Jack cried. "Live, Vlad, live!" He started pounding on Vlad's chest, attempting to restart Vlad's heart through brute force.

And then Danny walked in.

Diet soda.

The whole time it had been diet soda.

Jack didn't remember ever pouring diet soda into the ectofiltrator but he must have. He was the one responsible for filling it. He was the engineer, it was his job to make sure the machine was kept in good working order up to and during the experiment.

It... really was his fault. Years of indignant refusal, years of the great black mark against his record, of never being able to get back into a graduate program so he could at least have a chance to catch up to Maddie... It was all deserved.

And the whole time Jack had refused to accept it. He'd insisted it wasn't his fault. He'd insisted that he was innocent, that the cause of the explosion could never really be traced, that it was a fluke of the design, any excuse he could cling to. Yet in the end, they were right. They were always right. He did this to his friend.

Jack sat in the isolation room, now open to the rest of the lab. The quarantine was lifted and the plexiglass taken down but Vlad still slept fitfully in the hospital bed. Occasionally he'd talk in his sleep, two personalities arguing with each other. It was still heartbreaking but as the hours went on it seemed to get easier. Almost as if Vlad was working to integrate the multiple personalities on his own.

Jack watched as Vlad thrashed as if from a horrible dream, suddenly shouting something in French. Vlad sat up with a start, eyes glowing red before he fell back onto the bed in a faint. His skin was flushed and sweating, expelling the toxin as Maddie called it.

The kids had recovered very quickly, all ready to go home and work on three weeks worth of missed homework within a couple of hours. But here it was two days later and Vlad was still recovering.

"I'm sorry," Jack whispered. "I really did do this, didn't I?"

Vlad gave no answer as he laid sprawled on the bed.

"Please get better," Jack said. "No more other yous, k?"

"Il est a moi, Jack," Vlad mumbled. "Il est a moi." _He's mine, Jack. He's mine._

Jack patted Vlad's arm. "You'll get better, Vladdy. I know you will."

"Je nes veux pas. Je sais mieux que cela." _No, I won't. I know better than that._

Jack squeezed his friend's hand and went upstairs. There was nothing he could do but wait.

The incinerator flared as the last of the flammable material was shoveled in for disposal. Despite knowing they had the cure for Vlad's particular strain of ecto-acne Maddie still insisted there was no reason to tempt fate. Despite the thousands of dollars worth of materials currently melting in the roaring inferno Jack had to agree. No one should be forced to go through what Vlad experienced. And yet...

Who knows how many times it had happened? The information they got out of the GIW documents only covered two years. The pages didn't mention when or if Vlad, or rather "Patient 613" stopped having recall reactions in their care. Heck, there was no word on how long they held him, when or even **if** they released him! Jack shuddered. Vlad went through so much as a result of the accident, so much he'd never allowed himself to notice. And to think, all that time he'd been pissed that Vlad's accident had cost him his candidacy when Vlad was off somewhere being tortured for the sake of science.

Jack closed the incinerator door, locking it. He sighed, long and loud, feeling guilty about all those years of feeling bitter, of entry-level jobs measuring and testing and cleaning rat cages, of working and scraping and saving just so Maddie could finish her PhD so at least one of them could benefit from their work. It was hard, sure, but he also had the love of a beautiful woman, they had two wonderful children, and after so many long years of work they finally had their dream, their FentonWorks. Vlad...

Vlad was experimented on, that much was known now. He was poked and prodded and imprisoned and even tortured because of what had happened to him and there was nothing he could do about it. Cursed to fall ill with this horrid recurring ecto-acne until a cure could be found. Affected by the portal accident in horrifying ways, none of them good. And yet...

And yet a year ago Vlad had contacted them, asked to renew their friendship. Invited them to his home. Sure ghosts ruined it all but the fact remained Vlad forgave him for what had happened. There was no other reason Jack could think of for why Vlad would dare re-initiate contact when it would have been easier to just forget the past and suffer through his future.

Jack had to admit, Vlad was a much bigger man than he was. It took a singular strength of character to forgive someone for something so life-altering as this. Jack didn't think, no, he **knew** he would not have had such inner strength.

There was only one thing he could do then. Jack resolved then and there that Vlad would never have to suffer alone through anything again. Jack would be the best friend he could be, maybe invite Vlad into the family. He was the kid's godfather after all, it was time for him to really get to know Jazz and Danny. They'd like having Uncle Vlad around more, Jack just knew it.

With a lighter heart and a stronger resolve Jack headed upstairs and let the incinerator burn away the last of the bitterness from their lives. From now on things would be better.

.

* * *

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	113. 24RS After the Storm

** What did happen to the Crown of Fire and the Ring of Rage after Pariah Dark was locked away?**

**Actually, I noticed that the Ghost King didn't seem to be wearing the ring when Danny confronted him. Odd since he went through so much effort to retrieve it.**

* * *

**After the Storm (500)**

A "Reign Storm" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

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.

A cheer went up from the ghosts as the massive army of skeletons collapsed. Pariah Dark's power was broken. Cautiously the Box ghost followed the others floating over the mangled doors into the throne room.

Plasmius stood triumphantly before the sealed sarcophagus. The Ghost Boy lay it his feet encased in a strange metal battle suit.

"It's chess Danny, of course you don't understand, but then you never really did."

There was a flash of light and the bright rings of light formed around the Ghost Boy as he reverted to human form.

Then Vlad Plasmius knelt and examined the ghost kid. He swore softly and hastily began fumbling with the release catches. With further efforts he got the neural interface to disengage and he was able to extract the boy from the metal carapace.

He laid the boy out on his dais and checked for vital signs. Tension built as the moment stretched. The ghosts edged forward awaiting the verdict.

The Box Ghost shuffled backwards as if distance would keep bad news from coming. He found himself edging behind the dais. The Box ghost's eyes were drawn to the Ghost king's sarcophagus as it could be construed to be a box of a sort. It lacked the aesthetics of rectangular cardboard but boxes were his domain.

The coffin was sealed but he could still feel the aura of the powerful artifact. He could tell the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep was designed to hold the Ghost King not his symbols of power. He knew the other ghosts did not respect him but that was only because they underestimated his abilities. Raising his hands he called the ring to him. It floated gently into his palm.

He checked to see if any of his activities were noticed but all the ghosts were anxiously focused on their fallen champion.

At last Vlad sat back on his heels and nodded. "He's alive. His pulse is weak, but he's alive."

The Box Ghost joined in a relieved cheer. Phantom may have caused them all grief but today they had fought together.

Plasmius beckoned Skulker forward. "I need you to take the battle suit back to my lab. I'll get the boy back to the human world." Vlad lifted the boy in his arms and flew off.

The ghosts began to disperse.

Turning away the Box Ghost noticed something lying amid the wreckage of the throne. He waited until the other ghosts left and then went to investigate. Pulling the rubble aside, he found the Crown of Fire. With trembling fingers, the Box Ghost lifted it and set it on his own head.

Power flooded though him and he cried out as a shock of pain overwhelmed him. Light flared as the strength of his aura increased tenfold.

The pain faded leaving him filled with power such as he had never dreamed of. His mouth opened to wild laughter. He suddenly realized that his ambitions had been too low. There would be a new King.

* * *

.


	114. 25IC Half Life

**Half-life – the time it takes for half the radioactive atoms to decay.**

* * *

**Half-Life (250)**

An "Identity Crisis" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

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.

After his experience with the Ghost Catcher, Danny swore he'd never duplicate himself that way again. On sober reflection, he had to admit that one half had been kind of a jerk while his other half had a rod stuck up his….

But now was no time to quibble about small things. They had been so wrapped up in catching the latest supernatural attacker that they didn't notice the more mundane threat until it was too late. To be fair, Danny had been distracted with how the ghost had its spectral tail around Tucker's throat.

The masked men held Sam at gun point as they carried a load of stolen technology up the stairs.

Danny flung himself through the Ghost Catcher. Seconds later his human half dashed up the stairs while the ghostly half flew at the ghost. The ghost was tougher than it looked and by the time Phantom freed Tucker, he had lost consciousness.

His other half caught up to the thieves in the alley behind the house where they were loading their loot into a van.

"What about the hostage?" asked the one holding the gun.

"Boss says 'no witnesses'," the other replied.

"I guess you're out of luck, kid," there wasn't a trace of pity in his voice as he pulled the trigger.

There was no time for thought; Danny charged forward and shoved Sam out of the way.

Tires squealing, the panicked criminals sped away leaving a sobbing Sam frantically clutching Danny's blood soaked body.

.

* * *

**There will be no livestream tonight. We're picking up with season 3 next week. :D**


	115. TFBC Rebellious Spirit

**I was wondering why Sam was so cheerful about Christmas. I admit I was tempted to keep this one for my holiday stories but "Though Danny Phantom" won out.**

* * *

**Rebellious Spirit (800)**

A "The Fright Before Christmas" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Sam looked at the seasonal decorations and couldn't stop her lips from curving up into a smile. She waved cheerfully and called greetings to the holiday shoppers. Beside her, Danny stomped along glaring at everything.

Tucker gave her a peculiar look. "Okay, I know why Danny's in a bad mood, but how come you're so cheerful? I thought this blatant commercialism would be just the kind of thing you'd be railing against. It can't be the Christmas Spirit; you don't even celebrate Christmas."

"I can't help it. It's the one time of year my parents stick up for their principles," she answered.

Tucker knew that Sam and her parents didn't exactly see eye to eye on well, just about everything, but even he had trouble imagining Mr. and Mrs. Manson bucking convention.

"What's does it have to do with Christmas?" he asked.

"Last year, my parents dragged me to one of those Christmas parties they make me go to every year. You know, one of those parties where everyone is trying to impress everyone else. It was hosted by one of their big clients."

All the usual morons attended to boast about how much money they made by suing their neighbors or the latest stock figures for their companies.

Then this fat old biddy who hosted the party speaks up, "Yes, My Harvey made so much on his last case that I was able to hire the most fabulous interior decorator to redo the whole ground level of our mansion. His work was simply fabulous!"

All the women agreed that the interior decor was fabulously splendid.

"Speaking of decorating," another bejeweled socialite broke in. Did you see the Berkowitz's decorations. I suppose I shouldn't say anything," her voice dropped to a false whisper that did nothing to disguise the gleeful ridicule in her voice. "But she put up the tackiest decorations. I mean I know they are Jewish, and all but do they really have to advertize it? It's Un-American!"

The comment shook Danny out of his sulk, "Do people really think that way?"

"My Grandmother says it's nothing like when she was a kid when there were signs that said "No Jews or Blacks Allowed but…" Sam shrugged.

"Some people are still old-fashioned jerks?" supplied Tucker.

"Pretty much. Anyway, at this point I was looking for the nearest window, wondering if I could climb out before the security goons caught me when my parents spoke up," Sam continued.

"On the contrary," my father declared. "It's very American. I can see you haven't forgotten, Freedom of Religion is one of the ideals on which our country was founded. In fact there is no holiday that better embodies that ideal that Chanukah. It's more than just lighting candles, it's a celebration of winning a fight to practice your own religion."

"I didn't say they couldn't practice their religion, I just meant that they should be descent about it and so it in private," the woman declared. "My ancestors came over with the Pilgrims on Plymouth Rock! So don't tell me what's American!" she huffed indignantly.

At that moment Mrs. Manson stepped forward, and in her most waspish voice declared. "I'll have you know, that your so-called ancestors came over not for religious freedom but to impose their own brand of religion. While two thousand years earlier, my ancestors fought a war to be able to practice their own religion not to keep others from doing so!"

"Well! I never!" gasped the woman, "How dare you!"

"Just giving a little history lesson," Pamela replied tartly.

"You can be assured that once my husband hears how rude you are, we are going to get a new lawyer."

"That will save me the trouble of telling him his business is no longer welcome. I'll have a bill for the fees you have incurred so far drawn up but in deference to the holidays, I won't send it until next week."  
With that he turned and went to collect his coat.

"Come along, Samantha," her mother called, "We're leaving!"

With that her mother stalked from the room. Only the thought that cheering and pumping her fists would ruin the grand exit, kept Sam to a dignified pace. She saved it for when they got to the car.

As Sam buckled her seat belt her father said, "Remember Sam, while you must always be respectful of other people's beliefs, that doesn't mean you should be ashamed of your own."

The next day Sam watched as her parents asked the butler to bring up a box of decorations from the basement. She made no comment about their tackiness.

She couldn't have been more proud of her parents as the set the menorah on a table before the window so that it was clearly visible from the outside.

.

* * *

**AN: Going on the general time line I've gotten from other writers the story takes place in 2004/2005. Putting Sam's Grandmother in her mid-eighties, that places her birth year sometime in the 1920's with fudge room if she is younger or the timing of the series is later. Anti Semitism in America peaked in the 1930's.**

**Unfortunately, prejudicial attitudes of all stripes still lingers.**


	116. SW Environmental Disaster

**Tonight's stream begins season 3 with An Eye for An Eye at 5pm and midnight EST at livestream/pieinthesky (note the time change!)**

**Dear Anon, and whoever else was wondering, you can definitely submit a story for the collection! And it can be as short or long as you'd like. All we ask is that it be tied to, inspired by, set in, expanding upon, or somehow otherwise associated with one of the episodes.**

* * *

**Environmental Disaster (200)**

A "Secret Weapons" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Sam placed a hand on Danny's shoulder where he floated next to her as they surveyed the devastation. The grey landscape stretched out in front of them.

"Oh, Danny" she croaked, "It's…so much worse than I thought."

"How could they?" he moaned, "This place used to be beautiful, lush and vibrant."

There wasn't a hint of green anywhere in the crumbling rubble.

"What do you expect? Considering how we treat our planet, why would they care? All they think about is sucking the energy out," Sam said bitterly.

"What happened to the people who lived here?" Sam asked hesitantly.

"Forced out, I hope," he shuddered. There were other ways for a mega energy corporation to get rid of troublesome natives.

"Surely they wouldn't abandon their land without a fight?"

"There's not much fight left when the environment that feeds  
them has been drained away and their homes destroyed."

They watched as the dead zone continued to spread out from where the drill head had broken through. Even the rocks began to disintegrate into dust as the energy holding them together was leached out.

Of all the ghost technology his parents had invented, the ecto-converter was by far the most deadly.

.

* * *

**AN: Although it was hardly mentioned more than in passing, but the ecto-converter is a lot scarier when the implications of a device that can suck the energy right out of ghost are considered. I figured that if it can do this to a ghost, it can probably work on directly on the Ghost Zone itself.**


	117. DD Pheremones

**.**

* * *

**Pheromones (200)**

A "Doctor's Disorders" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

It wasn't often that Tucker voluntarily put extra effort into biology class but when Mr. Palooka had mentioned pheromones in biology class and its effectiveness in attracting mates in certain insects it got Tucker thinking.

Danny had been no help; he had cut class again to hunt ghosts and when Tucker tried to interest him in the project. Danny told him he had enough trouble trying to keep up with the minimal needed to pass.

A little research and he found some articles in some scientific magazines that suggested that humans might also be affected by pheromones. It seemed some scientists were trying to isolate components in sweat that would chemically send a signal to another. Other scientists were studying the effect of food odors.

Tucker reasoned that the expansive and painstaking process of isolating and identifying one particular molecule was unnecessary. As long as it was in his special perfume, what did it matter if there were some additional 'non-active ingredients' as well?

"The pheromones will send a subconscious chemical signal to girls when the smell my cologne," Tucker explained.

"Oh I concur. It is definitely sending a chemical message," Sam agreed. "It's telling me to keep away….far away."

.

* * *

There is a reason Tucker's perfume smells like a sweaty cookie.

The articles in question:  
"Do Pheromones Play a Role in our Sex Lives?" by Adam Hadhazy, Scientific American Feb. 2012

"National Geographic Survey Tires to Make Sense of Smell" Jeff Nesmith 1987, 1997 follow up.


	118. DD Follow-Up Check Up

**.**

* * *

**Follow up Checkup (100)**

A "Doctor's Disorders" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

The CDC had agreed that under the circumstances a mandatory screening of the entire school was in order.

"There's no sign of any long term effects of the ecto-infestation but we still want to check for residual ectoplasmic contamination," explained Dr. Fenton.

Danny watched nervously as his parents calibrated the screening equipment.

"Don't worry, Danny, it's just a precaution," his father reassured him as he placed a firm hand on his son's shoulder. "A trace amount is nothing to worry abou…" he broke off as the machine gave off a steady beep, indicating considerably more than just a trace contamination.

.

* * *

.


	119. PM Takes One to Know One

**Here a little plot hole that always bothered me.**

* * *

**Takes one to Know One (200)**

A "Phantom Menace" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

The Fenton GAV pulled into the driveway at FentonWorks. It was a little worse for wear after their camping trip but Maddie had to admit that Jazz had been right. Danny was back to his normal easy-going self even though for a while it seemed as if they might end up with two crazy kids instead of one.  
Sam and Tucker showed up even before they finished unloading. In hurried whispers, Danny filled them in.

"You mean there really was a ghost but we couldn't see it?" Sam asked.

"Yep. But I've got a lid on it now," Danny smirked as he indicated a Fenton Thermos. "Tucker, I want to thank you for the alibi-o-matic. It not only helped keep my secret identity, but it is also useful for some friendly sibling pranks."

"This almost makes me regret being an only child," snickered Sam when Danny told her he had hidden it inside Bearbert.

"A little immaturity is good for you," Tucker agreed, "Now who's up for wasting time playing video games instead of doing homework?"

"Works for me," Danny agreed. As he followed them inside, he was struck by a thought:

How come his friends couldn't see Young Blood?

.

* * *

**HAPPY DANNYVERSARY EVERYONE! NINE YEARS TODAY. :D  
**


	120. TUE The Penultimate Enemy

**.**

* * *

**The Pentultimate Enemy (100)**

A "The Ultimate Enemy" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Clockwork took a moment to savor his victory. Danny Fenton was back on course for an optimized time stream. The easy part was over.

He steeled himself for part two which considering the character of the man would be far more difficult.

It made clockwork wonder if some people were doomed to make the wrong choices no matter how many second chances and life-lessons they were given.

Here was a man who had long ago shed his moral inhibitions. Yet his decisions would be more crucial than Fenton's. He fiddled with the focus bringing the subject into view: Vlad Masters.

.

* * *

** AN: I always thought Vlad was a much greater threat than Danny and wondered why the observants didn't simply eliminate Vlad instead. Vlad was equally (if not more) responsible for Dark Dan's creation and his evil nature.**


	121. TUE Realizations

**First Person Lancer, written for 'The Ultimate Enemy'. No logical reason why Lancer would have accused Danny of cheating, even considering what he overheard, unless...**

**Unless he already suspected.**

**Been writing fanfic for 15 years and this is honestly my first drabble.**

* * *

**Realizations (100)**

A "The Ultimate Enemy" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

Realizations

Some realizations… should not be made.

That's all there is to it.

When I realized… _Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll_ when I realized…

He's dead. One of my students is dead.

I thought I was hearing things, I must have been mistaken. I **heard** him scream. My blood ran cold when I heard him scream. But… I wasn't mistaken.

I know now. It was all too real.

I'm not the only one who knows. His sister knows. She was… guilty. Nervous and scared and guilty when I confronted her. She knows her own brother is dead.

What do I do?

.

* * *

**Also, Neb has started a standalone story for the project,** s/9178012/1/Time-Traveler-s-Paradox**, which comes out of _Infinite Realms_, so if you've liked her work so far, go check it out and tell her so! :)**


	122. TUE A Pretty Little Lie

**During 'The Ultimate Enemy'. In the future, trapped and alone, on the run from his hardened enemies, a young Danny Phantom finds friendly plot exposition in the lair of an aged, broken Vlad Masters. We're supposed to take his words at face value. After all, why would he lie?**

**Because the truth would break the child. And so we're told a pretty little lie.**

**Some things really are better left unsaid.**

* * *

**A Pretty Little Lie  
**

A "The Ultimate Enemy" fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

"All you wanted was to make the hurt go away," Vlad lamented. Sadness overwhelmed his voice as he remembered what he had been, what he had done. What had become of him and all that once was. "I honored your wishes. No more painful human emotions to drag you down. Sadly, that freed you up to rip the ghost out of me."

Wide green eyes watched him as he told the story of Phantom's downfall, green eyes he'd not seen in ten years. If the boy turned human they'd be the most beautiful shade of sky blue. If only...

"And when my evil ghost half mixed with yours," Vlad continued. "And my evil side overwhelmed you..." He paused, unable to continue.

"What happened to my human self?" Danny asked.

So innocent, so curious, so sweet. Vlad couldn't bear to break that down. "Some things, my boy, are better left unsaid," he whispered.

Vlad closed his eyes and sighed. A whisper tickled the back of his mind. _That's not how it happened..._

*****

No, that wasn't what happened to us.

All we wanted was to end his pain. We wanted it so badly that we were prepared to be alone again. Let him give up his charade of humanity and everything it required of him. Let him let go and simply be a ghost. He'd possessed his own dead body for far too long. It was time to give in, time to come home.

Unfortunately his ghost didn't see things that way. And it attacked.

I remember the bite of the steel claws. They stabbed into me, caught lines of the contract in their grip. I remember...

You were being dragged away from me, or maybe me from you; it doesn't matter anymore. I reached for you, grabbed you, wouldn't let you go. The contract stretched between us, a pink ribbon of spectral parchment that began to tear...

I wouldn't let go. You wouldn't let go, either. Not even as the contract began to unravel one line at a time. And then those grasping, seeking claws found what they were looking for.

They ripped my core away from us, leaving us with barely enough power to work a sugar cane field.

You wrapped the torn contract around us both as the boy's ghost consumed my power, fed off of it, swallowed it. A revenant consuming the power of a ge rouge loa. It's no wonder the boy's inherent instability morphed into malice. And then the ghost consumed its human body, sucking down what life-force remained in the corpse.

It wasn't our evil, my horse. No, you're as evil as the day I forced you to sign this contract. The boy's evil... was always his own.

*****

Vlad pulled the heavy metal gauntlets onto his hands. Their weight was agonizing, pulling him down and reminding him of how... human he was now. "So you're saying there's a medallion lodged within you, keeping you rooted in this time period?"

"Yes! And I can't reach it." Danny pressed the palm of his hand against his chest where his evil future self had shoved the medallion. He swore he could feel it pressing against his diaphragm, giving him the constant urge to hiccup. "But I'm guessing if you could reach into me and rip out my humanity, which, by the way, sounds totally gross, you can get the medallion out, too! Then I'll pop back to my present like Tucker and Sam did."

"Or I could just destroy you now and prevent this future," Vlad mused.

_Don't kill him._

Vlad's ear twitched as he wiggled his fingers, summoning what scant power he still had to extend the claws. Tell me, my horse, he thought.

_The monster will take everything from him. It already has. Allow the boy his vengeance. He deserves it._

You still feel for him, don't you.

_Of course I do. I wouldn't be human if I didn't. He deserves this chance, Ge Rouge. If he fails we will deal the killing blow to his abomination._

Vlad giggled, a maddened laughter born of two fractured minds trapped inside one head. He turned on Danny, teeth bared in a demented grin. "Didn't think of that, did you?" he asked. He lunged forward and tore his claws through the spectral form that stood before him. So trusting, so earnest.

Green eyes shot wide with agony before the whole form dissolved in a wisp of time.

Vlad sighed. The medallion fell to the floor. He let the gauntlets follow. "I see you're awake, Vladimir," he said to the empty room, to the voice in his head. "Welcome home. It's been a long time since you last whispered in my ear. Years, hasn't it?"

_Yes, well..._

"And if the boy fails? If your habit of indulging his whims backfires again?"

_Then we're still here. But this time I'm not letting that abomination lull me to sleep. This time we will put him down._

Vlad nodded. His hand moved without his permission, controlled by the whisper in his ear. That hand reached up to scratch at his beard, to run fingers through his hair, to tug at his clothing. _We look terrible._

Vlad chuckled. "If we have to put him down we should be ready for him," he said. "I suppose that might involve a shave."

_And a haircut._

"Let's not get hasty."

*****

Wiry white hairs fell in clumps, shorn from the snarl that lived on his face. A long hour with the comb to untangle the nest on his head. The grime of far too long without a shower washed away, taking scent and stains with it. Vlad reveled in the cascade of water as it restored some sense of civilization even if it wasn't one he'd been born into.

A fresh pair of pants. No shoes, no shoes left anymore. The shirt discarded, far too used, replaced with a silk-lined waistcoat worn directly on the skin. The jacket over it. And finally his most precious garment.

Despite the loss of his core he was still capable of some small feats of power. This was one such feat, a snowy white cloak lined in blood red satin. Vlad threw it over his shoulders, fastening the fine iron chain around his neck.

He lifted the great battleaxe from the wall. A mere decoration for far too long, it would finally have the chance to carry out the Task it was created for nearly a decade ago. He settled down in his chair and pulled out the honing blade, lovingly drawing it along the edge of the axe. "The creature is our responsibility," Vlad whispered.

_It is. We allowed its creation._

"We will be the one to put it down."

_The creature will die by our axe._

Long strokes of the blade awoke the enchantment, leaving a faint pink glow along the edge. It was the last great feat left within him before he fully lost his power. Before he was rendered nothing more than a zombie, a loa mounted a horse awaiting the will of the houngan. Before he lost the ability to hear the voice of his human half trapped deep within the recesses of their mind.

The blade hummed, pink runes of enchantment sparking along the shaft. Vlad hoisted the weapon and let his eyes glow red. The human's voice faded away for the last time as the loa surveyed its surroundings, this burrow dug out among the debris of a collapsed castle.

But suddenly there was no Task. Everything began to shift, to change. Reality warbled as the universe detached from the timeline and this future began to dissolve.

The loa smiled. Vengeance had been taken. The world crumbled, leaving nothing but wonder.

.

* * *

.


	123. RT Conclave

**After 'Reality Trip' Danny destroyed the Reality Gauntlet, putting things back to normal. That doesn't mean they stay normal. Turns out destroying an Artifact has consequences.**

* * *

**Conclave**

A "Reality Trip" Fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

* * *

.

The world was normal again. The Reality Gauntlet saved from the hands of the evil megalomaniac, the fabric of existence returned to normal, and of course nobody knew his secret anymore.

There was only one way to keep it that way. Danny tossed the artifact into the air and blasted it to smithereens.

And then... normality failed again.

A ripple in the fabric of reality arched out through the dimensions. Quiet, near-petrified eyes opened, the first time in millennia. Shades spiraled in the depths of shadow. Demons and worse stirred in their lairs. The greedy, the damned, the ghosts, all looked around in fear at their hoards.

Someone dared...

Someone dared **destroy an _artifact_**?

Who?

Who would do such a thing?

The circular chambers were filled with a cacophony not heard in a thousand years. Collected in an arc at the rim, floating behind their raised dais, thin-fingered creatures with giant single eyes floated draped in fine robes. They observed the gathered conclave.

After all, observe was what they did best.

A black fox held a glowing ball in his tail, glancing nervously as he clutched at it. He spoke to a white-furred man with ankles ending in charred stumps and the horns of a stag jutting from its head.

A great feathered snake undulated as it spat and hissed at a beautiful woman in a red dress.

A woman with a tiger's head chatted with an ever-aging man in a purple cloak.

A man made entirely of darkness stood in the shadows, tendrils of blackness occasionally reaching out to grasp at the unwary and toy with their souls. He spoke dismissively to a blue-skinned man in a white and red cloak.

Cyclopses in their finest robes, furry creatures from the planes of ice, balls of flame bouncing across the floor, tendrils of plant snaking along the edge of the chambers, the rustle of feathered wings, the soft rumble of a dragon's breath...

Chaos reigned in the conclave.

One single Observant floated up to the dais and clapped its long, bony hands three times. The cacophony died down and many, many different eyes turned toward it.

"We all know why we're here," the Observant said. "A heresy has been committed, one that is not to be taken lightly. The Reality Gauntlet has been destroyed."

A chaos raised again. The Observant clapped its hands together but this time there was no adherence to rules. It glanced at a voluptuous woman with the head of a tiger. She roared, her voice echoing through the chambers, leaving silence in its wake.

"Yes, yes, this is a serious offense," the Observant said. "What does the Crawling Chaos have to say about these events? It was your gift, was it not?"

Shadow dripped into the middle of the floor. The light shining from above to illuminate the speaker did no such thing as the blackness sucked at the very air around it. "The Reality Gauntlet was ours," it said in a deep, commanding voice somehow both oily and trustworthy. "We gifted it to humanity. It became theirs... to do with as they would."

"You granted them a weapon to destroy themselves with and you expect us to be **sorry** that it's lost?!" boomed a voice in the back. A great bird with flaming iridescent feathers took to the air, lightning and smoke roiling off of its wings. "You gave them the Gauntlet to toy with them and their faults! Of course they destroyed it!"

"The Thunderbird has not been granted the floor!" the Observant shouted. "Furthermore, the humans were **not** responsible for its destruction!"

A murmur rose in the chambers at that revelation. The Observant sighed and hid its eye in its hands.

"Oh but they were, inadvertently," said a calm voice.

The Observant glanced at the speaker then gestured resignedly. "The floor recognizes the Master of Time," it said.

Clockwork floated far above the council floor, drifting down only as the Crawling Chaos withdrew. "Frederick Showenhower was the last human to use it," he revealed. "Something I am sure the illustrious Nyarlathotep knows full well. But one other used it after to reverse the damage to reality. Including stripping the memories of the event from nearly everyone alive."

"Not unlike some of your own recent activities, Clockwork," the Observant sneered.

"Of course," Clockwork allowed. "And I have taught the boy well. After all, you did place him in my care."

Chaos reigned as shouts for answers came from all sides. Clockwork gave a smug smile to the assembled Observants. Their meddling would not go unpunished.

"Order! I demand order!" the Observant shouted. And yet its voice was lost among the din.

"What 'boy' is this?" demanded a monkey with shimmering gold fur.

"Clockwork's involved?!" shrieked a man with the beak of a crow.

"I, Technus, demand answers! I- OOF!" A large stone hand smacked the newer addition to the conclave into silence.

"**I will let loose the ten demon daughters if I do not have order!**" shouted the Observant at the top of its voice.

The din grew quiet. The Observant straightened its finery and cleared its throat. "Now then..." it said, its voice kept very carefully neutral. "Clockwork, oh Master of Time, are you saying... that you have failed... to teach young Danny Phantom... in any way?"

Clockwork looked carefully smug.

"You were responsible... for his future," the Observant continued, enunciating every word to keep its calm. "That... half-dead... **creature** was fated... to destroy the material plane... and the metaplanes... **including** the Ghost Zone. Are you saying... you have lost control... of that boy?"

"Of course not," Clockwork said.

The Observant's eye twitched. "Then... why did he destroy... **an _artifact_**?"

"You wanted me to assure that the boy would not grow to destroy the world," Clockwork drawled, shifting forms to something much younger. "An artifact is not the world."

"An artifact is just the beginning!" shouted a voice in the back. The floodgates were opened as the conclave devolved into a bar brawl masquerading as heated debate. Clockwork stood in the pillar of light, controlling the floor like a mad conductor as old battle lines were redrawn and ectoblasts began to fly. Emissaries of the planes of ice shouted in defense of their 'great one' while the the buzzing of insects called for the extermination of the blasphemer. The Crawling Chaos laughed with glee as serpents writhed and struck at each other.

An old man sauntered into the spotlight with Clockwork, leaning heavily on a staff. His horned head was adorned with a straw hat and his lips idly puffed a reed pipe. He leaned close to Clockwork and whispered in a gravelly voice.

"Order!" shouted the Observant. "Order! I will have order!"

Clockwork nodded then conceded the floor. The old man stepped backwards as well to grab a ghost in a white and red cloak. Shocked red eyes went wide as the ghost was thrown bodily into the light. Those eyes turned toward the Observants. He jumped and began trying to compose himself, tugging at his cloak and pulling himself to his full regal height. He gazed haughtily at the Observants and waited to be recognized.

Clockwork's voice rose over the din as he reached for his staff. "Time Ou-"

The room went quiet.

Clockwork smiled and aged to match the old man.

"The floor recognizes Vladimir Plasmius," the Observant growled, glaring at the ghost in the spotlight.

Vlad pulled his cloak around him, his natural sense of drama demanding he look good. "Honored Observants..." he began.

"Cut the crap, Human-Suit!" came a shout from the back.

Vlad paused. He recognized the voice, one prison warden in a white hat. "Isn't interrupting the conclave against the rules?" Vlad mocked.

If the Observant at the dais had a foot it would have been tapping with impatience.

Vlad cleared his throat as he sensed the tension from the dais. "Yes, well... Consider this possibility, if you will. A boy, lost and alone, refusing the counsel of nearly everybody who might save him from his imposed solitude. Striking out at whatever alters his little bubble of comfort. Unceremoniously deporting ghosts who roam the material plane. He even breaches contracts to carry out his mindless, tactless vendetta! And so you put your trust in perhaps the worst possible being in the multiverse to guide the boy." Vlad gestured to Clockwork for emphasis. The room filled with whispers, watching as Clockwork was insulted to his face yet he did nothing but smile.

"Even Dread Azathoth would be able to teach the boy how to play the flute for Obatala's sake," Vlad continued. "Honored Observants... You put Danny Phantom's teaching in the hands of one who cares not one iota for detail, life, death, contracts, or artifacts. Are you surprised the boy cares as little for these things as his teacher?"

The tiger-headed woman purred, drawing the Observant's attention. It leaned down for a quiet discussion.

Vlad took his own chance to dart over to the old man. "What am I doing out here?" he hissed.

"You wanted the boy as an apprentice," Clockwork mocked.

"Ignore the temporal disturbance," the old man said. "You've been annoying everyone trying to get us to help you claim your apprentice. So... here's the Way. Take the path or leave it. The choice is yours, Ge Rouge."

Vlad bowed his head. "Yes, Papa," he said before floating back to the spotlight.

"'Temporal disturbance'?" Clockwork asked, still mocking.

"Would you prefer 'quantum mechanical manifestation'?"

The Observant pulled away from the tiger-headed woman. "What do you propose, Plasmius?" it asked.

Vlad took a deep breath. He had several plans but none which would work. So he improvised.

"Consider the boy's point of view," Vlad said, attempting to feel as confident as he looked. "His territory is invaded every other night and he doesn't even have a concept as to why that annoys him. New powers discovered and mastered through the cunning art of blowing things up. Managing to avoid the horrors of humanity through sheer dumb luck. He's lost, alone, scared, and he inherently distrusts anyone and anything who might help him rise above his situation. He's a danger to himself, to everyone around him, to the multiverse as a whole if left unchecked and untrained. But he can't be trained. He's made sure of it. He will not stand to be trained by anyone capable of it."

"This is all well known," the Observant drawled. "Make your proposal or make way for one who can."

Vlad gathered his scattered thoughts, looking for something. Anything. _What would the Green Hornet do..._ he thought. Vlad's eyes lit up. Of course!

"Now consider how the boy must view me," Vlad said, some real confidence bleeding into his voice. "I've killed, kidnapped, blackmailed, obsessively stalked, and that's just this past year. I am the antithesis of his idea of a proper 'hero'. After all, that's what he considers himself. A 'hero'." He paused for the sound of a thousand eyerolls to die down. "I will be his villain, Honored Observants. I will mold his future, his actions, his power, all from the outside. I will guide him into civility by forcing him to be civil to defeat me. He will do everything I ask because he will not realize I am the one asking."

The Observants traded glances. Clockwork and the old man leaned on their respective staves and grinned maniacally. The Crawling Chaos had to fold in on itself to muffle its laughter. The room shuffled, noises of amusement and approval mixing in one quiet rumble.

The Observant on the dais convened with its fellows. Whispers were exchanged.

"You read too many comic books as a child," Clockwork said.

"It was all I could think of," Vlad murmured.

Whispers faded as the Observant took to the dais again. It floated tall and trim, regal and domineering. Self-important. "The conclave has reached a decision," it said. "Vladimir Plasmius, you will be responsible for molding the boy's fate. Find some way to teach him basic etiquette or we will be forced to do what we should have done in the first place."

Vlad looked as shocked as he felt, needing to be hit in the back of the head by the old man's staff before he bowed properly.

"This conclave is dissolved," the Observant called. It clapped its bony hands three times, officially ending the conclave.

Vlad collapsed, finding himself sitting in the middle of the floor as the spotlight blinked out. Red eyes viewed the chaos around him as the spirits, the Ghost Masters, those creatures who dared call themselves gods, as they all went their separate ways. Soon he was alone, stone columns looming quiet and dark in the eddies of the Ghost Zone.

He had no idea how he was going to pull this off.

.

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	124. EFAE Tattoos

**Rated PG for vague naked.**

**'Eye for an Eye.' I threatened long ago that I would give Vlad a tattoo.**

* * *

**Tattoos**

An "Eye For An Eye" Fanfiction

By NebulousMistress

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.

Laughter echoed throughout Fentonworks. Danny had been strangely eager to watch the news today, something that Jack was chalking up to some late-blooming maturity. It was about time for it, the boy was almost sixteen.

But this? That wasn't really news. It didn't seem to matter as Danny called in his mother from the kitchen where dinner was cooking. She joined in with her son's wicked laughter. It was infectious. Even Jack had to give in.

There on the evening news was Vlad Masters, his towel blown away by the chopper's slipstream. The wall of his hotel was rendered invisible, obviously the result of some vindictive, putrid, peeping ghost. His hands went down to try and cover himself while the paparazzi's camera zoomed in.

"Whoa, whoa, wait, what's that?" Danny asked, still laughing. He pointed out a spot on Vlad's left hip.

Jack looked as well. Yep, there it was for all the world to see.

"Vlad has a tattoo?" Danny asked. "I'm not sure if I want to look closer or not."

"And I have the matching one!" Jack crowed. "We chose each other's designs! Wanna see?" Jack's hands went immediately to the zipper on his jumpsuit.

"No!" Danny fell off the couch in an attempt to escape. He shot to his feet. "I mean, that's okay, Dad, I'll take your word for it."

Jack watched his son run up the stairs. That was odd. Surely his son wasn't embarrassed...

"It's okay, Jack," Maddie said, patting Jack on the shoulder. "Not everybody can appreciate pacman tattoos."

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	125. 34MOAT Bad Trip

**If a kid showed up and keeled over on the doorstep and started saying odd things, Mr. and Mrs. Masters might have decided to seek out medical attention. **

** Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom**

* * *

**Bad Trip (300)  
**

A "Masters of All Time" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

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.

The emergency room doctor consulted the clipboard in his hand. "Mr. and Mrs. Masters?"

"Yes?" The middle-aged couple rose to meet him.

"Are you the ones that brought the boy in?"

The man nodded, "Yes, can you tell us about his condition?"

"I was rather hoping that you could tell us something, such as; who he is?" he asked hopefully.

The woman shook her auburn hair. "He literally just showed up and collapsed on our doorstep."

"We checked but he didn't have any ID," Mr. Masters added.

"I need to reach his parents," the doctor said.

"Is it serious? He claimed he had traveled a long way and was just exhausted and hungry but then he started saying…strange things," Mr. Masters said, "That's when we decided it would be prudent to bring him here."

"What sort of things? They may give us a clue who he is."

The Masters exchanged looks. "He called me 'Mom', but we don't have any children,"

Mrs. Masters explained, "Then he started talking about ghosts and portals to the past…none of it was making any sense."

The doctor sighed, "Maybe the police have a Missing Persons Report on him."

"Will he be alright?" asked Maddie.

The doctor looked baffled, "Frankly, I don't understand how he was conscious much less able to put up a fight."

"What do you mean?" asked Vlad.

"Heart rate, temperature, blood pressure… his vitals are so critically low he should be dead but when we tried to draw some blood he became so violent we had to administer a sedative."

Vlad scoffed, "He probably fried his brain doing drugs."

The doctor nodded, "We'll know more when we get the lab work back."

"He can't be more than fourteen!" Maddie protested, "Why would he choose to throw away his future, like that?"

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**Livestream tonight of Forever Phantom! 7 pm and midnight EST at livestream / pieinthesky**


	126. MM Time Bomb

**Disclaimer : I do not own Danny Phantom or Dr. Seus' Cat in the Hat.**

**I've been writing a lot about Fenton technology lately. Their whimsical weapons go way beyond ordinary physics.**

**The Dr. Seus references is in honor or his (somewhat** (eep, now very!)** belated) birthday.**

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**Time Bomb  
**

A "Micro Management" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

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.

At first Danny didn't get why Tucker was so excited when Danny described his misadventure with Dash and his Dad's Fenton Crammer.

"It really shrunk you down?" he asked incredulously.

"Yeah, we could have been life-sized action figures," Danny confirmed.

"And you were alright?"

"No," Danny answered testily, "I just finish explaining that I kept losing my powers."

"I mean, your brain and body worked and everything."

"Yeah."

"Oh wow! It's a complete violation of the laws of known physics."

"My parents aren't exactly on speaking terms with the laws of physics."

"What happened to the concept of conservation of mass and energy? What happened to all that extra mass? How did you think with a brain the size of a peanut?"

Danny decided it was a good time to disabuse Tucker of the idea of testing it again. "I don't know and I'm not volunteering to do it again."

"That's beside the point. Skulker's tech still worked!" Tucker was practically dancing with excitement.

"And that's supposed to be a good thing?" Danny asked dryly thinking that Tucker had rather missed a point or two himself."

"Oh man, you have no idea. If the miniaturizing of circuitry is possible we could…."  
Tucker's eyes bugged out "we could make computers that were unbelievably fast and could fit on a key ring."

It wasn't the first time that Tucker had gone off in to a techno-geek fugue. Danny just waited. He would come out of it in a moment or two.

Sure enough, his friend began babbling, "You don't get it. I'm only beginning to think of possible applications. This invention of your Dad's could make you unimaginably rich!"

Danny directed Tucker to take a couple of slow breaths before he passed out.

"Com'on, let's go find your dad!" gasped Tucker yanking the door open and calling for Mr. Fenton.

He was stopped in his tracks as an explosion made the house shake. Smoke billowed up from the basement lab.

"Dad?" Danny called apprehensively.

"Don't worry. I'm fine, Danny," Jack Fenton coughed out.

Danny was relieved that his father's tone seemed to indicate the disappointment of a failed experiment rather than pain or injury.

There was a whirr of the heavy duty fans kicking in and the smoke began to clear.

Cautiously they made their way downstairs to find Jack Fenton staring morosely around at demolished lab bench. Equipment and papers were widely scattered glowing liquids dripped from cracked beakers.

"What happened?" Danny asked.

"The test sample from Fenton Crammer exploded," he sighed.

"Oh…wait..what?" his son asked.

"I was testing out the Fenton Crammer on a brick. It seems to work great for a little while but then it just randomly decompresses. Rather explosively, it seems," he shook his head at the drifting powder that Danny realized had once been a brick.

"You mother claims that you just can't cram subatomic particles and something about Hamiltonian quantum operators or some such."

"You mean anything you shrink with the Fenton Crammer explodes?" Tucker asked in dismay.

Mr. Fenton sighed, "I'm afraid so."

Danny turned white. "Explodes?"

His Dad shrugged, "Unless it is un-crammed."

Danny breathed slightly easier, "How long?"

His Dad shrugged again. "I was hoping that infusing it with ectoplasm would help but the explosion time is as unpredictable as ever but nothing has lasted longer than 24 hours. Now what was it you wanted to talk to me about?"

Tucker looked dejected, "Never mind. I guess it's a moot point now."

"Just another get rich quick scheme that didn't work out," Danny explained.

"Easy come easy go," Tucker agreed. "Speaking of which there aren't any more shrunken samples waiting to explode are there?"

"No, that was the last one," Jack assured him. "I suppose I'd better lock this in the weapons vault. I did promise you mother I wouldn't blow up anything else before she got home." He looked around a bit sheepishly. "Uh there's no need to mention this little mishap to your mother, is there?"

"Actually, before you put it away there is one more thing that needs un-cramming," Danny shifted his feet and gave Tucker a significant look. "Freezer."

"You mean he's still in there?" asked Tucker.

"I never got a chance to put him back and up until now, I didn't think it was so urgent," Danny said.

"Right," Tucker said hurried up the stairs.

Jack turned toward his son. "Danny, what is this all about?"

Danny rubbed the back of his neck. "Dad, do you remember when you shrunk that ghost that was chasing me?"

"You mean you have Phantom in our freezer?" his Dad grinned gleefully.

"Not exactly; it's Skulker," Danny explained just as Tucker came bounding back down the steps, tiny Skulker in hand.

Jacks forehead crinkled in puzzlement, "How did he get in our freezer?"

"Danny Phantom put me there," squeaked a tiny Skulker.

"Danny Phantom put you in our freezer?" Jack asked.

"I suppose he didn't have a thermos handy," Skulker explained.

"Hello, Thing One," Danny said pleasantly "before we put you back into the Ghost Zone, you can help us clean up this mess."

"What makes you think I'll do that?" Skulker.

"It might be your sweet and whimsical nature or it might be because if I don't restore you to full size you're going to explode. It's an unfortunate side effect of the Fenton Crammer. Apparently the longer you stay shrunk the more likely you are blow up. You've been bite sized for what, twenty hours or so? According to my Dad, nothing has lasted longer than 24 but it could happen any time."

Skulker growled something unintelligible and nodded.

Danny took the Fenton Crammer from his Dad's hands and depressed the trigger at the same time Tucker tossed the ghost into the path of the beam. A beam shot out and a full sized Skulker appeared.

Danny's aim didn't waver. "Let's get the job done because you don't want to be here when my mother gets back."

Danny sighed with relief as the portal doors were locked behind Skulker. He turned to survey the spotless lab. He handed the Fenton Crammer to his father.

"Here Dad, let's put this away before something else happens."

Chuckling his father placed the Fenton Crammer on a shelf in the weapons vault.

Tucker whispered to Danny "Aren't you worried that your dad will shrink you again?"

"Not really," Danny smirked and opened his hand to reveal a handful of components which his shoved into his genes pocket. "This part of the stuff we don't need to mention."

Just then they could hear the front door open and Maddie called down from the kitchen. "Boys? Are you down there? I got some ground meat so we can grill some hamburgers for dinner I also have some soy burgers if you want to invite Sam over."

"That sounds great, Mrs. Fenton, thanks." Tucker accepted on behalf of all of them.  
"Did you guys find something to keep yourselves occupied?" Maddie asked as she walked down a few steps and stuck her head around the corner. "Oh wow, you did a great job cleaning up the lab. I'll have to make some of my fudge as a reward." Humming happily she turned and headed back up.

The three of them exchanged looks.

"Hey, What would you do if your mother asked you?" said Tucker.

"I'm not going to say anything if you're not," Jack said.

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	127. 32BM Beauty is Fleeting, Love is Forever

**I never quite got why Sam entered herself in the beauty contest. I might agree with Sam's opinion (This may be a case of 'sour grapes') but it seems that what she was doing was trying to get herself thrown out—and then how would she make her point? (I do admit that I loved her gag with the vampire teeth). Of course it worked out that since it put her in position to reveal that Dora was a ghost. But what if, a more likely candidate won instead?**

* * *

**Beauty is Fleeting, Love is Forever  
**

A "Beauty Marked" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

Danny shuffled the cards in front of him, where he had written notes for each girl, evaluating their charms and beauty for each part of the contest.

He was acutely aware of Sam and Tucker sitting behind him. Tucker had made his own evaluations based on the bribes each candidate was willing to shell out. Sam kept her heckling to a low murmur that only Danny's ghost hearing could make out. Danny was hard pressed not to laugh.

"You're only saying that because they disqualified you for behavior unbecoming to a contestant," Tucker snorted. "I think it was the vampire teeth that did it."

"Too bad," Sam said with a false regret, "I was going to read Goth poetry for my Happy Princess Talent."

"You should have tried burping the alphabet. That always worked for me," Tucker suggested.

"When you were seven," Sam replied.

"Can't beat the classics," Tucker grinned smugly.

Danny tried to focus on the Star who walked up to the microphone. She a sweet soprano that kept wandering off looking for the right notes in all the wrong places.

In a few minutes Danny knew his short span of popularity would be over. Danny had to admit that Sam was right about the contest being stupid but it was nice while it lasted. It wasn't like he really had a choice in the matter.

"So who would you pick?" Sam asked Tucker.

Tucker consulted his PDA. "Star definitely is the highest bidder. Did you know she offered to do the math homework for the rest of the semester?"

"You're in a higher math level than her. How would it help you if she did your homework?" Sam asked.

"Helpful from Danny's point of view. She apparently gives great messages and she's very easy on the eyes. She lost some points for her singing talent, still it shows a willingness to please," Tucker continued.

"You're criticizing her singing?" Sam asked incredulously.

"So, if you didn't get disqualified, what would you have been willing to do to win Danny's favor?" Tucker teased.

"Maybe kick your butt," Sam growled warningly. "Speaking of butt-kicking, what about Valerie?"

"She didn't enter," Tucker replied, his voice carefully neutral.

"Uh huh," Sam said thoughtfully.

"Don't even go there," Tucker cautioned and turned the subject back to Danny, "So who do you think he's going to pick?"

"He really doesn't have any choice," Sam sighed.

"What do you mean?" Tucker asked.

Sam gave him one of those superior looks that let him know he being naïve.

"If he chooses someone who is beautiful and/or talented but lacks a high social status the A-listers would ban together and her apart."

Tucker frowned but he has seen how vicious girls could be. "Okay, what about someone who has social status and is not beautiful?" Tucker proposed.

"A contradiction in terms. All the A-listers have to be beautiful/handsome or they wouldn't be A-listers," Sam dismissed the idea with an off-hand wave.

"There are still plenty of candidates," Tucker pointed out. "What if he picked someone who has lacks conventional beauty, talent, and social standing?"

"The only way that would work is if she were Danny's girl friend. Otherwise, it would be viewed as cruel ridicule. Danny would never be so mean," Sam said.

"But when you were a candidate you weren't exactly going out of your way to be appealing," Tucker objected.

"It was okay for me. Everyone knows I'm goth and that I was doing it deliberately to make a point by making fun of the whole idea of beauty contests. Besides everyone knows that Danny like every other boy in the school, has a crush on Paulina."

It was only because Tucker knew Sam so well that he detected the bitterness in her comment was more than her usual gothic sarcasm.

"You can't blame Danny for looking," Tucker said trying to back up his friend, "I mean a guy's got to be half dead not to notice that she's a hottie. Oh hey, that didn't come out right." He gave himself a face-palm before waving his hands in a vague apology. "Danny has long since gotten over her."

Sam shook her head uncertainly, "His only real option was to pick someone who is beautiful and high ranking. In fact there was only one option; only the top dog – euphemistically speaking – has the social clout to hold onto the title. In other words: Paulina. If anyone else is chosen it would upset the balance and Danny would be caught up in it and be drawn and quartered." Sam explained, "As his best friend, you might be part of the collateral damage."

"Ouch," Tucker looked worried.

Danny was so distracted that he had to be prodded by Danny when Ms. Mattingly asked for the Judge's verdict. Danny stumbled through a brief speech on how they were all worthy before he named Paulina as the Happy Princess.

Paulina's blinding smile beamed out over the cheering crowd, perhaps all the brighter for the disappointed scowls of her rivals.

But Danny wasn't smiling; he was looking at Sam.

Tucker leaned toward Sam, "You do know that he would have totally picked you if you hadn't been disqualified."

* * *

It was at that moment that the platform Paulina was standing on rose into the air and amid burst of fireworks, Ms. Mattingly placed the crown on the winner's head. There was a flash of light and before the astonished crowd they vanished.  
In the general shouting and confusion that followed the three slipped away and found a secluded place behind the baseball backstop.

"Could it have been a ghost?" asked Tucker.

Danny shook his head uncertainly. "My ghost sense didn't go off." He paused and looked around, "In fact it hasn't been this quiet in a while."

"How do you mean?" asked Sam.

"Besides those medieval ghosts that have been attacking all week, there's been this low level…" Danny waved his hands in a futile attempt to describe the odd feeling. "…sort of like a faint perfume that you keep getting whiffs of but not enough to actually trigger my ghosts sense."

"Smell?" asked Tucker. "What did it smell like?"

Danny shrugged. "It's not a smell really but it makes me think of ghosts."

"Okay," said Sam, her voice all business like, "Let's say it was a ghost. Where would it take Paulina?"

"The ghost zone?" suggested Tucker.

"Why would be a better question," said Danny.

"Maybe they needed another monster?" Sam suggested.

Danny sighed, "She's human. She doesn't belong in the ghost zone. We have to rescue her."

Sam sighed. As much as she liked to think herself above such pettiness, a part of her wanted to gloat. She suppressed it and nodded. "Come on, let's go borrow your parents' Specter Speeder."

* * *

It had taken them some time to track down the ghost who had captured Paulina. At first they had taken turns driving around the ghost zone first checking out the places near the Fenton Portal. When that proved fruitless, Danny started asking resident ghosts if they had heard anything. As most ghosts were hated the intrusion, Danny had quickly acquired an impressive collection of cuts and bruises.

It was then that Tucker called out cheerfully, "Hey! I'm picking something up on the Real World Radar."

"You couldn't have done that before I tried asking door to door?" Danny moaned.

"We must have just gotten in range," Tucker answered.  
Following the radar they came to the door that was actually more of a castle gate complete with drawbridge and dragon shaped gargoyles.

They were just about to phase through when the portcullis rattled upward and the draw bridge lowered.

A contingent of armed guards marched out leading a pair of horses pulling a wagon covered by a cloth canopy.

"None may enter the Prince Aragon's kingdom save by his leave," the guard intoned.

"Looks like the welcoming committee is here," murmured Danny charging his hands with ectoplasm  
The lead guard moved his pike to bar Danny's way. "Who goes here and what is your business?" he demanded.

"Considering, you've been attacking me all week, I'd think you'd recognize me. Now I'm here for the human girl. So if you just hand her over I'll be on my way," Danny shouted back.

The guard raised the weapon but before he could thrust it at Danny, a familiar voice called out, "Phantom? Is that you?"

The curtains parted to reveal Paulina. She waved at Danny enthusiastically. "Ooh! I knew you'd come."  
"Paulina?" Danny asked, "Are you okay?"

The girl laughed, "Of course, silly! But is so nice of you to come and walk me home."  
The would-be rescuers blinked their eyes in bafflement.

"Are you here to escort the princess back to the human world?" the guard demanded.

"I guess I am," Danny confirmed.

Paulina wasted no time in scrambling down from the carriage and over to the Specter Speeder. From the doorway she waved at the guards cheerfully. "Tell the prince that I'm sorry things didn't work out but thanks for the feast and all."

She pulled the door closed and fastened the seat belt. "Take me out of here," she ordered.  
Danny phased thought the windshield. Tucker took the controls and turned the vehicle around and headed back the way they had come.

It was Sam who asked first, "Not that I'm glad to see you, because I'm not, but I'm glad you are not hurt. What happened?"

Paulina checked her hair in the rear view mirror before answering. "The whole beauty contest was set up by this Prince Aragon, who wanted a human bride. So when the tiara was put on my head, it transported me there."

"Why would a ghost what to marry a human?" asked Phantom.

"Everyone wants to marry me!" Paulina said without a hint of humility. "Have you seen the ladies in waiting? Ug-Lee! No wonder Prince Aragon went shopping elsewhere."

"Putting that aside," said Tucker, trying to ignore Sam's gagging noises, "You didn't marry the prince did you?"

Paulina laughed, "Oh no, he wanted me to stay live in his castle and there's no way I was going to. Do you know that in the middle ages, there was no electricity?"

"Imagine that," said Sam dryly.

"How did he expect me to plug in my cappuccino machine?" Paulina huffed.

"I would have imagined the lack of running hot and cold water or toilets would have been more of a problem," Tucker pointed out.

Paulina wrinkled her nose. "Well obviously I wasn't going to put up with such primitive conditions, so I demanded modernization be part of the pre-nup."

"Pre-nuptial agreements? They have such things in the middle ages?" Danny asked.

"You don't know anything about being a princess." Paulina sneered, "Back then they used to call it a betrothal. In feudal times, marriages were alliances between powerful heads of state. You don't think something like that was going to be left to chance, do you?"

"Alliance with whom?" Danny asked.

"With humans," Paulina batted her eyes at Danny who edged back as far as the seat would allow.

"Didn't betrothals have to do with dowries, and such?" asked Sam.

"Yes I told him my family was very wealthy," the girl continued to preen.

He wants human money?" asked Danny mystified.

"He asked if my father had lots of lands, and serfs, or silver plated dishes. I told him I had some investments but the prince didn't seem interested in stocks and bonds," Paulina shrugged.

Sam laughed outright.

"And then," Paulina went on, "I told him that the wedding couldn't take place until I had came of age, which would be fine since it would take at least two years to get ready, seeing as the whole place needed to be redecorated not to mention major renovations."

Danny snorted with laughter. Paulina raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Ghosts tend to be very particular about their lairs and are extremely resistant to change," Phantom explained.

"Tell me about it. Those guys think the printing press is too modern for their tastes," she scoffed.  
"You asked them to bring in a printing press?" Sam asked in surprise. She hadn't thought Paulina would realize the social implications of that pivotal invention.

"Of course, you don't expect me to write all the wedding invitation out by hand with a quill pen, do you?" Paulina answered.

"So what happened?" asked Tucker.

"The prince changed his mind about marrying a human. I was just leaving when you showed up to escort me home," she flashed Danny a smile again.

Danny was relieved to see the Fenton portal up ahead. The portal responded to the transponder code of the Spector Speeder and Tucker brought the vehicle to a stop inside the lab.

"I better call the school and let them know that Paulina's alright," Sam said pulling out her phone.

"You can drop me off at my house, Phantom," Paulina smiled. Tucker stayed behind to move to Specter Speeder into the underground garage. He watched as Phantom picked up Paulina to fly her home.

"Something I don't get. When she started making all those demands, why didn't the prince just tell her to stuff it? He seemed like a pretty powerful ghost," said Tucker.

Sam answered, "He's a ghost that rules a land without time so he has a pretty good idea of the concept of eternity. Think of it: beauty is fleeting but in the ghost zone, marriage really is forever? I don't blame him for being terrified."

.

* * *

**.  
**


	128. KT Postcard

**.**

* * *

**Postcard  
**

A "King Tuck" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

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.

"Thank you for your time, Ambassador, I'll let you know about the President's itinerary when it has been confirmed."

The man paused on his way out of Representative Folley's office and looked at the postcards on the wall.

"Ahh," he rumbled approvingly, "I see you have scenes from my country, the great cradle of civilization."

Tucker nodded pleasantly and bid the man goodbye. The Egyptian ambassador didn't know that they served not to remind him of the achievements of ancient world but as a reminder that the power of his office was to be used to serve others not himself.

.

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**.  
**


	129. DCMH Love Advice

**.**

* * *

**Love Advice (300)  
**

A "Double Cross My Heart" fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

"Well, how do you think you feel?" Tucker challenged.

"I don't know…sort of confused I guess," Danny admitted. "Why's Sam suddenly ditching us to hang with Gregor?"

"It's obvious, Danny: you're jealous," Tucker snickered.

Danny scowled at Tucker, "I am so not. I'm just concerned. There's something off about him."

"Then why do you care if Sam meets someone new?" Tucker asked.

"I just think we should check him out, is all," Danny mumbled.

"Like the way you were checking out Valerie just now?" Tucker shot back.

"That's different, you entirely missed the point," Danny sunk in his seat sullenly.

.

.

"Did Danny put you up to this?" Sam asked irritably.

"Not exactly," Tucker fiddled with his PDA. "But as the one being caught in the middle, I'd like to know where things stand."

"It's really not your business," she said pointedly.

"Best friend's prerogative," Tucker countered.

"Best friends should know better," she grumbled.

"How do you feel about him?" Tucker pressed. "Would you pick Gregor over Danny?"

"I don't know." Sam said honestly.

"Are you sure you don't just want to get back at Danny about Valerie?" Tucker asked.

"I would never stoop that low," she objected, or would she?

.

.

"Tucker, are you sure she's the one?" asked Danny hesitantly.

"You've seen her? She's beautiful!" Tucker said earnestly.

"That wasn't my question."

"Love at first sight," Foley sighed.

"It's so sudden," Danny waved his hands vaguely.

"Not everyone waits ten years. When are you and Sam finally going to 'Bind the Souls' as they say in the Ghost Zone."

"Stop changing the subject," Danny warned.

"Trust me," Tucker said confidently.

"It's just that you've practically asked out every girl you meet and you want to marry the first girl that said yes."

"I know what I'm doing," Tucker grinned.

.

* * *

**.**


	130. TUE Encounter

**One of my very first fic ideas.  
**

* * *

**Encounter**

An "The Ultimate Enemy" Fanfiction

By sapphireswimming

* * *

.

Danny and Vlad circled each other warily, with ecto-energy blazing in their fists, ready to be released at a moment's notice.

"You have absolutely no idea what you are trying to turn me into, do you?"

Vlad smiled amusedly. "My apprentice… my son…"

"No!" Danny shook his head. "No, that's not what it is."

"Then what is it, Daniel? Please, enlighten me."

"You would turn me into a monster that makes you shake in your shoes, that you would have no way to control. It would destroy you, Vlad." Danny stared at the man. "And you don't even get it."

.

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**Stream of _Livin' Large_ tonight at 6 pm (TIMECHANGE!) and midnight with Nick "unite" games beforehand. livestream / pieinthesky**


	131. Update (to be deleted later)

Hey guys! I'm going to be in the car for the next couple days unable to tell you anything, so here's an early update:

* * *

TDP is still going. We're midway through season 3 right now.

Scheduling is still Friday nights at 7 pm and midnight streams of each episode with a preshow between (unless otherwise stated on phandom-rewatch . tumblr). Streams can be found at livestream / pieinthesky

If you have fic ideas for ANY episode, write it out! We'd love to have them. Just PM them to me or let me know to open up a docx connection and I'll get to it as soon as I get home. :D


	132. EFAE Out Pranked

**FINAL STREAM IS TONIGHT. **

**That's right, folks! We've come to the end of the show (except for Phantom Planet but we all just kind of agree that never happened and Tangi refuses to stream it so you can watch that one on your own to round out the series).  
**

**A huge THANK YOU to everyone who joined in the streams, created artwork for the DA group, hung out on the forum, and read, reviewed, and wrote these amazing fics! Special shoutout to MsFrizzle and NebulousMistress for writing so much that I always had something to post. You both are incredibly talented. And thank you to TangerCatnip for running the streams every week since there's no way I could have hosted them and made this project come to life. You guys are all amazing and have made Through Danny Phantom so very fun to be a part of and I think we've definitely done our part to revive the phandom. :D**

**That being said, although we've come to the end of the streams, this fic collection will continue as long as people keep sending me stories! (although I'll probably label it "complete" next week). Anyone can send in stories even if you haven't written one yet or weren't able to make it to the streams. They can be as long or short as you like. They can be from any episode, even going back to Mystery Meat. If you have any questions, see if the answers are in Chapter One or ask me! :)  
**

* * *

**Out Pranked**

An "Eye For An Eye" Fanfiction

By MsFrizzle

* * *

.

"Ha! He who laughs last!" Danny gloated as he made himself comfortable in Tucker's office after the swearing in ceremony. "You beat Vlad and you didn't  
even need to cheat and overshadow everyone to do it."

While Tucker appreciated Danny's support he didn't join in.

One of the first things he had done was to initiate an investigation. In what could only be termed forensic accounting he and the oversight committee had poured over Amity Park's financial records during Vlad's term.

Tucker didn't say anything; he knew how much of Vlad Master's own personal funds went into the city's coffers.

.

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**Stream of _D-stabilized_ tonight at 6 pm (TIMECHANGE!) and midnight EST. IT'S THE LAST ONE- be there! livestream / pieinthesky**


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